Social identity and the recognition of creativity in groups

Abstract

This paper develops an analysis of creativity that is informed by the social identity approach. Two studies are reported that support this analysis. Study 1 (N=73) manipulated social identity salience and the content of group norms. The group norm was either conservative (i.e. promoted no change) or progressive (i.e. promoted change). When social identity was salient and the group norm was conservative, a non-novel proposal was perceived to be more creative. Study 2 (N=63) manipulated social norms and identity relevance. Results showed that while social norms influenced perceptions of creativity, identity relevance influenced positivity but not perceptions of creativity. These findings support the idea that perceptions of creativity are grounded in the normative content of group membership and self-categorization processes.