Are Grades Stifling Creativity?

We’ve all been graded on our work for what seems like forever. But are grades hindering our ability to think creatively? Recently, the argument has been made that they are.

According to a 2002 study done at the University of Michigan, 80% of the students surveyed based their self-worth on academic performance. On top of this, students said that they were less willing to take on challenging tasks when there were grades involved, for fear of receiving a poor grade. Students who get good grades are regarded as intelligent, even though some of the brightest kids don’t necessarily get the best grades.

Because of these fears and the pressure to get good grades, students are unwilling to be creative. Creativity is stifled by harsh guidelines and rubrics. Rather than feeling comfortable stepping out of the box, students feel stifled and stuck.

All of this has to do with intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation. Studies, including the ones mentioned by Collins and Amabile in the article “Motivation and Creativity,” have found just how important intrinsic motivation is to creativity. Grades create extrinsic motivation, with students working primarily to meet certain requirements and, ultimately, to earn a good grade. However, studies on creativity have shown that high levels of intrinsic motivation, combined with relatively low levels of extrinsic motivation, can help people be less susceptible to pressures to perform, so they are able to perform more creatively. When high levels of extrinsic motivators are present, people lose the desire to be more creative and explore different possibilities.

Intrinsic/extrinsic motivators can also transfer to the workplace. It is argued that management often stifles creativity because they focus too much on extrinsic motivators, rather than looking on what individuals need in order to perform creatively and become innovators. If managers focus too much on things like goals and evaluations, it can add too much bad pressure on employees, and discourage creative thinking.

Overall, it is possible that grades hinder our ability to think creatively. When assignments have very stringent guidelines, it is difficult to think outside the box, so to speak. This can transfer into the workplace, with too many extrinsic motivators limiting our ability to innovate and come up with creative solutions to problems.

Sources:

http://themycenaean.org/2013/05/do-grades-crush-creativity/

http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2013/05/the_case_against_grades_they_lower_self_esteem_discourage_creativity_and.single.html

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/03/17/how-common-core-standards-kill-creative-teaching

https://hbr.org/2012/04/balancing-the-four-factors-tha-1

Collins, M.A., & Amabile, T.M. (1999). Motivation and creativity. In Robert J. Sternberg (Ed.) Handbook of Creativity. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Reduce, Reuse, Replenish!

Have you noticed how many of your soaps and detergents have “water” listed as their first ingredient? Founder of Replenish, Jason Foster, did. While ironing his shirts, Foster noticed that the can of ironing spray had water as the main ingredient (~90%) while the remaining amount was the actual chemicals and components that made up the ironing spray. His motive was to make a more sustainable way to continue using these products, but not having to pay or ship these products in large containers simply because of the water they hold. His brainstorming lead to Replenish.

The idea of Replenish is to reduce made by non-reusable plastic bottles that hold our detergents and are thrown away once empty. According to statistics listed on Replenish’s website, “only 13% of the 60 million pounds of plastic discarded annually is recycled”. Replenish has created a formula of “Smart Packaging” that has the same spray bottle design but has a detachable bottom (seen below).

The packs of detergent contain the active ingredients that hold concentrated amounts of the 10% active ingredients seen in commercial detergent bottles.  The bottle is reusable, and the packs are uncapped, screw into the bottom. The bottle is then turned over and the detergent is squeezed into a “measuring cup”, then water is added!

Most pods can refill the bottle about 3 times, which saves a vast amount of money and waste that would have accumulated if the same product was bought at a commercial level and the containers were thrown away after just one use. The Replenish CleanPath Products contain All Purpose Cleaner, Bathroom Cleaner, Glass Cleaner, Hand Soaps and Sanitizers, and Replacement Bottles.

A product like this could be attributed to Weisberg’s understanding that creative thinking is a form of problem solving. Jason Foster went beyond analogical thought transfer: seeing a situation, relating it back to a past experience, and transferring it to the new problem. His thought process for Replenish took an old idea of using a concentrated form of powders, juices in the food industry and applying it to household supplies. In an interview, Foster explains that part of his creativity was sparked by the use of concentrated powders by Crystal Light that could be mixed with water from home to make their drinks. Instead of applying what he saw from the food industry to another food product, he looked at concentrating detergents that were over 90% water. His motivation is also intrinsic: he has hope and a desire to make a difference in the world. Foster encourages other companies to adopt the idea of concentrated detergents that can be filled with water at home to reduce the detrimental effects of using plastic and increase the satisfaction of customers when they are receiving the same products (essentially) for less.

I checked out how much the items cost, the replacement bottles are FREE! And the refills are all around $13 with shipping around $3. The refills come with 4 pods, multiplied that each pod gives 3 “bottles” for a total of 12 “bottles”, making the cost of each “bottle” around $1 without looking at shipping. Cheap and sustainable! Sadly the refills are out of stock, but there is a mailing list for when they come back in stock.  I definitely recommend trying this product out since the mission of this product is sustainability and many have access to water that can be used to form the detergents we need.

http://www.chiefpackagingofficer.com/meet-the-innovators-jason-foster-founder-of-replenish/

http://www.myreplenish.com/

Hovding - The Invisible Bike Helmet

            Although I have lived in Chicago the past 4 years, I have only recently discovered my love of biking throughout the city.  However I myself, like many of the other bikers I observe, seem to neglect one of the most critical pieces of safety equipment used in biking, the helmet.  Given the dangers of a bike collision in a busy city, you would think that a helmet would be a no brainer, but as we know many of us continue to ride around helmetless.  Although I can attribute my lack of helmet to the sheer laziness of ordering one, there really is no definitive answer to why people choose to not wear a helmet.  I would venture to say that most people simply find them inconvenient.  Wearing a helmet is often uncomfortable, they are bulky, cause us to sweat more intensely (i.e. helmet hair), and are a nuisance to carry around with us once we have reached our destination.  If only there was an ideal product that provided bikers with the safety of a helmet, while also allowing bikers to avoid wearing one. 

            Fortunately for us, the creative minds behind the Hovding have provided bikers with a solution.  The Hovding acts as an airbag for bikers and provides riders with as much, if not greater protection against head injuries then the traditional helmet.  The rider wears the Hovding around his or her neck, similar to a turtleneck collar.  This collar is equipped with numerous sensors which have been programmed with algorithms that detect biker movements that are unnatural and associated with a collision or crash.  Therefore, if you are riding along and experience one of the movements associated with a biking accident, the Hovding reacts and deploys its head covering airbag.  Once deployed, this airbag covers a much larger surface area then a traditional airbag and remains inflated for several seconds to provide continue protection through the duration of the accident.  After a period of time, the airbag will then slowly begin to deflate.  The video below shows exactly how the Hovding works in an accident.  

             The creative minds behind this invention are two industrial-design, graduate students Terese Alstin and Anna Haupt.  Their inspiration came from new legislation that occurred while the two were studying at Lund University in Sweden.  During this time, Swedish Legislation passed a law that required children under 15 wear a helmet while biking.  The new fear amongst the Swedish population was whether a similar law would be adopted that applied to the entire Swedish population.  This fear intrigued Alstin and Haupt who set out to find a solution that would allow bike riders to comply with this potential new legislation while also not forcing them to wear a traditional helmet. 

In their initial field research Alstin and Haupt found that “aside from helmet head, people thought traditional helmets were unsightly and uncomfortable. Not to mention, it’s hard to find a smooth way to walk into a meeting or bar with a hard, clunky helmet in tow”.  One individual in particular said that the only way he would want to wear helmet would to not wear one at all.  This particular individual served as a major inspiration claims Alstin.  Alstin stated that “it was great motivation for us because we began to think, well, maybe helmets aren’t supposed to be worn on your head. And after seven years of testing, research, and development Alstin and Haupt developed the prototype of what today is known as the Hovding. 

           

            While observing the creative process of both Alstin and Haupt I feel that these two individuals work as “little C” creators.  They found a problem, people choosing to not wear bike helmets despite the safety benefits, and provided a solution, an entirely new concept of helmet.  To come up with their innovative solution I think they did a great job problem finding.  By collaborating with numerous bike riders in their field research, Alstin and Haupt Found the root problems with bike helmets.  This enabled them to come up with a novel solution of a biker airbag, rather than reinventing the wheel with another variation of a bike helmet.  Personally, I think that this creation came as the result of their own intrinsic motivation.  Rather than seeking fame or money “Alstin and Haupt [simply] set out to design head gear that people would wear whether they were forced to or not.”

            As a bike rider who is currently riding helmetless, I find this innovative airbag to be enticing and as I move forward with my head-protection purchase, I feel that a biker airbag may the better alternative than a standard helmet.  

SOURCES:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aX-WXBMI8I
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/the-bicycle-helmet-thats-invisible-until-you-need-it-180948270/
http://www.hovding.com/how_hovding_works

I Help You -- You Help Me

We’ve all had bad days. We’ve maybe had a shitty week, too. Usually, shitty days end and a new day begins and it’s better than the day before. A shitty week is often followed by a week that’s not quite as bad. For people with depression, however, it can feel like the “bad days” will never end, like everything is gray, always, and there seems no hope for better times. It can be incredibly hard to find another perspective to this grayness, or darkness that covers everything.

That is why Koko is such a revolutionary idea.

The app was first developed and tested in an MIT Lab by Robert Morris and his team. The idea when Morris studied coding and reached out to a community of programmers for help when he found himself stuck. The collective intelligence found in this forum intrigued him. He creatively took an idea from a field focused on computers to the field of psychology, and developed his PhD project called Panoply.

It seems that his motivation for the project was more intrinsic than extrinsic: Morris wanted to help people find solutions, make their lives easier through his innovation, rather than to "meet some goal external to the work itself, such as attaining an expected reward, winning a competition, or meeting some requirement" (Collins and Amabile, 1999). While the original project was explicitly focused on people with depression, Koko branches out much further to people with every day stressors—to anyone who feels they need a little extra support in their lives.

Koko offers support for and from people all over the world. Someone struggling with—say—negative thoughts about themselves regarding body image can post a short description of how they are feeling and what the worst outcome of the situation or thought would be. The community of members around the globe then help to “rethink” the negative thoughts and give perspective to the situation. An article in on Time.com describes that “Panoply [now Koko] works by teaching users a therapeutic tool called cognitive reappraisal, which tries to get people to look at a problematic situation from different perspectives”.

To give an example:

Someone is having a really hard time with body image. They might write something like

“I hate my body and am ugly no matter how hard I try to look better

 I fail, and no one else thinks that I am beautiful anyway”

And, as a worst case scenario

“No one will ever tell me that I’m beautiful or love me.”

The community might rethink these negative thoughts and answer something like this

“You are beautiful even though it can be hard to feel like no one thinks that you are. Maybe you can find one aspect that you do like yourself and remind yourself of this feature every day? You are beautiful!”

Koko is a two-way street. While it does not offer clinical support for individuals suffering from depression, it does create a system of support and can be incredibly powerful for people who feel like they need someone to listen and to give another perspective. Koko is free of cost, and thus can function as an additional tool for individuals who struggle with costs for mental health counseling and therapy.

On the other end, Koko offers a boost of confidence to those who respond and rethink. Just a little comment can mean a lot.

If you are ever struggling, remember that there is a platform out there to help you out.

http://www.npr.org/2015/04/04/397524413/improving-mental-health-via-social-network

http://time.com/3764869/panoply-social-networks-mental-health-health-depression/

https://www.wired.com/2015/12/a-new-social-media-network-to-help-you-deal-with-stress/

https://itskoko.com/

Collins, M. A., & Amabile, T. M. (1999). Motivation and Creativity. In Robert J Sternberg (Ed.) Handbook of Creativity. New York: Cambridge University Press.