A dual process model of generation and evaluation: A theoretical framework to examine cross-cultural differences in the creative process

The purpose of this study was to examine cross-cultural differences in creativity based on the two-fold model, according to which creativity involves idea generation and idea evaluation phases. We contend that evaluation is more stringent in East-Asian cultures, where unique ideas are more likely to be inhibited, than in Western cultures. In order to examine the proposed model, three studies were conducted with Israeli, South-Korean and Japanese samples. Study 1 measured evaluation of ideas generated by other individuals. Israelis exhibited higher divergent thinking (DT) and evaluated ideas less stringently than did Koreans and Japanese. In Study 2 cultural priming was used. Western priming led to more lenient evaluation of ideas than Eastern priming, across cultures. In Study 3, Israelis and Japanese evaluated their own ideas. Israelis exhibited higher DT and more lenient evaluation compared to Japanese. Collectively, it appears that cross-cultural differences in creativity are partly explained by variations in evaluation stringency.