Repost from lifehacker : mild ambient noise promotes creativity

Mild Ambient Noise Can Spur Creativity and Keep You Motivated:

A new study explains why so many of us find it easier to work and learn when sitting with our laptops in coffee shops or other bustling places, and the answer is simple: modest ambient noise (around 70 decibels) triggers the part of our brains responsible for abstract and creative thinking. More »

creativity and the unconscious

The Merits of Unconscious Thought in Creativity

1. Chen-Bo Zhong,
2. Ap Dijksterhuis and
3. Adam D. Galinsky

Abstract

Research has yielded weak empirical support for the idea that creative solutions may be discovered through unconscious thought, despite anecdotes to this effect. To understand this gap, we examined the effect of unconscious thought on two outcomes of a remote-association test (RAT): implicit accessibility and conscious reporting of answers. In Experiment 1, which used very difficult RAT items, a short period of unconscious thought (i.e., participants were distracted while holding the goal of solving the RAT items) increased the accessibility of RAT answers, but did not increase the number of correct answers compared with an equal duration of conscious thought or mere distraction. In Experiment 2, which used moderately difficult RAT items, unconscious thought led to a similar level of accessibility, but fewer correct answers, compared with conscious thought. These findings confirm and extend unconscious-thought theory by demonstrating that processes that increase the mental activation of correct solutions do not necessarily lead them into consciousness.

2010 AMA survey

2010 American Management Association Critical Skills Survey:

According to the survey results, executives said these skills and competencies have been articulated within their organizations as priorities for employee development, talent management and succession planning. In fact, the majority agreed that their employees are measured in communication skills (80.4%), critical thinking (72.4%), collaboration (71.2%), and creativity (57.3%) during annual performance appraisals. In addition, job applicants are assessed in these areas during the hiring process.

http://www.amanet.org/news/AMA-2010-critcal-skills-survey.aspx

Creative people tend to be more dishonest

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6613.html

The Dark Side of Creativity: Original Thinkers Can Be More Dishonest

Published: February 10, 2011
Authors: Francesca Gino and Dan Ariely

• Creative students who showed a natural aptitude for divergent thinking tended to cheat more than linear thinkers.
• Creativity is a better predictor of unethical behavior than intelligence.
• Students who were deliberately induced to think creatively were, in turn, more likely to cheat than those who weren't primed to think outside the box.
• Creative people are more likely to cheat in part because their creativity helps them to come up with ingenious explanations to justify their unethical behavior.