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That Block Creativity* "Our general failure (over the past three thousand years of human history) to notice the inseparability of things, and to be aware of our own basic unity with the external world, is the result of specializing in a particular kind of consciousness. For we have very largely based culture and civilization on concentrated attention, on using the mind as a spotlight rather than a floodlight, and by this means analyzing the world into separate bits. Controlled attention is drummed into us in schools; It is essential to the three R's; It is the foundation of all careful thought and detailed description.... But the price we pay for this vision of the world in vivid detail, bit by bit, is that we lose sight of the relationships and unities between the bits." -Alan Watts The home and the school are basically institutions for drilling children in cultural orientations. The transmission of the cultural heritage is the implicit or explicit task of much of what is done by the parent and the teacher. To a certain degree, this goal is commendable and worthwhile. Carried to an extreme degree however, it loses sight of the fact that the creative individual - to some extent - must stand apart from his culture in order to produce a new idea, a novel image, or an original product. There is a great deal of evidence that the American society finds it difficult to change and improve its culture at the same time that it is conserving it and passing it to future generations. However, those cultures of the past which have survived longest have don just this; they have transmitted a coherent heritage at the same time that they have encouraged innovation. In the American family and school stirrings of the creative are often suppressed in childhood. One 10-year-old girl of my acquaintance was discovered by her mother at the piano writing her own music. The girl's mother scolded her for not practicing her music lessons. The girl began playing her scales diligently but never composed original music again. A 12-year-old boy had spent several years painting pictures of his two pets - a dog and a canary. Attempting to encourage him, his teacher arranged for a classroom exhibit for his paintings. No sooner were the pictures on display than several of the other boys in the room taunted the young artist, calling him a "sissy." Humiliated by this persecution, the boy never painted another picture. In an attempt to assess the ways in which different cultures encourage or discourage creative behavior, psychologist E. Paul Torrance administered thousands of questionnaires to teachers from five nations and reported his results in 1965 (i6). he found that all five cultures investigated (Germany, Greece, the Philippines, India, and the United States) appeared to be punishing unduly children who showed evidence of emotional sensitivity, idealism, moral courage, intellectual skepticism, intuitiveness, "guessing" ability, or tendencies to "regress" into childlike play. On the other hand, the teachers in all five cultures gave great rewards for courtesy, promptness, obedience, popularity, and intellectual conformity. Torrance found that American teachers alone tend to discourage strong emotional feelings among their pupils. Teachers in the United States were also the only ones who unduly encouraged children to "be receptive to the ideas of others." Some receptivity, of course, is needed by the creative person but an excess amount of "other-directedness" stifles original thinking. Despite these unfavorable attitudes toward traits associated with creativity, the character traits preferred by American and German teachers were judged by a panel of researchers in the field of creativity to come closer to the traits of the "ideal" creative personality than those preferred in the other three cultures. The American and German teachers for example, gave more encouragement to versatility, a sense of humor, and independent activity than did the teachers in Greece,, the Philippines, and India. In their 1962 study involving the opinions of the American classroom teachers, psychologists Jacob Getzels and Philip Jackson reported similar data (5). As might be expected, the teachers preferred highly intelligent students who did well in school to average achievers with more modest scores on intelligence tests. However, average students were preferred to highly creative students who did well in school. Getzels and Jackson also asked parents what they considered to be the most desirable traits in children. The parents placed "adjustment," "moral character," and "getting along with others" at the top of the list - far ahead of creativity, intelligence, and the ability to work toward a goal. The findings of Getzels, Jackson, and Torrance also have been reported by other investigators. The results suggest that typical American parents do not want a creative child in the family and that typical American teachers do not want a creative child in the classroom. As a result, creative boys and girls often renounce, suppress, or redirect their drives and impulses to bring their behavior into conformity with what their parents and teachers seem to prefer. Children may learn cultural values so well that they also begin to criticize divergent, independent, and imaginative behavior among their creative friends and classmates. When they have children of their own, they sometimes pass on these anti-creativity attitudes to the new generation. As a result of these pressures, the creative child is often caught up in a social game - the game of cultural conformity. If this game is played seriously by the child's parents, teachers, and peers, his creative potential is bound to suffer. This concept of the game aspects was described by such writers as essayist Stephen Poller (12) and psychiatrist Eric Berne (2). All games according to Berne, are based on ulterior transactions and have some element of exploitation. "Good" social games are those whose contributions out weigh their disadvantages while "bad" games are those in which the results are a more harmful than beneficial. Intimate social relationships go "beyond games" because no ulterior motives are involved between people who attempt to comfort, accept, and enjoy the other person just as he is. Berne stated that raising children "is primarily a matter of teaching them what games to play..... Society frowns upon candidness.... and fears it because of the unmasking which it involves." To avoid exposing themselves to the dangers of intimacy, most people settle for games when they are available, and these fill the major part of the more interesting hours of school social intercourse. Society teaches young children from birth how to behave, think, feel, and perceive. Some standardization is necessary for biological and social survival; too much standardization makes acculturization a "bad" game rather than a "good" game because it inhibits originality and divergent thinking, two key elements into the development of creativity. TEN CULTURAL COMMANDMENTS Those aspects of cultural training which hamper creativity can be identified by their rules and commandments, sometimes overly stated, sometimes covertly implied. The first of these commandments might read, "Everything Thou Doest Must Be Useful." America's emphasis on practicality has produced many worthwhile results, but it has often been carried to extreme with deleterious effects upon children. Getzels and Jackson observed that fantasy stories such as Rumpelstillskin and Cinderella have often been shouldered aside on the child's bookshelf by Nurse Nancy and Mr. Fixit. Journeys to the land of Oz and the World of Winnie the Pooh have been displaced, even at the kindergarten level, by, "real" visits to the sewage disposal plant and the sausage factory. Getzels and Jackson further stated this: Even that last bastion of the child's private world - his box of toys - is being taken over by the press of practicality. Here too the key adjectives are "realistic" and "educational".... instead of "imaginative" or "exciting" or even just plain "enjoyable." The floppy rag doll that did nothing and yet everything as the malleable companion of the child's dreams has given way to the true-to-life human replica that leaves nothing to the imagination- it "really talks" and takes in and oozes at all the appropriate orifices (5). Once this commandment has been learned by the child, it will probably continue to influence him in his adulthood. If there is not time enough for the child to read a fairy tale, how can there be any time at all for the adolescent or adult to read a poem, much less compose one? Poet John Clardi commented, "there is no poetry for the practical man"; however, if a person spends too much time on practicality and not enough time in the imaginative fantasy, "he must become something less than a man...." The second commandment that mitigates against creativity is, "Everything that Thou Doest Must Be Successful." It is easy in an achievement-orientated culture, to become imbued with the idea that one should be thoroughly competent and adequate in all possible respects. Children imbued with this idea hesitate to mention their imaginative ideas or to display their creative products for fear of ridicule and censure. If the early creative efforts of children received more interest and praise from adults, children would eventually realize that they are capable of doing original work that has merit in at least one field. Getzels and Jackson asked the teachers and the parents in their study to site the traits which they thought would most likely lead to success in adult life. The qualities mentioned most frequently were getting along with others, ability to work toward a goal, and adjustment; creativity and intelligence were near the bottom of the list. When Getzel and Jackson asked a number of the students the same question, their statements were similar, indicating that they had learned well the rules of the cultural game. Getzels and Jackson also asked the creative students which traits they felt characterized their own behavior. The replies obtained were about the opposite of the traits these students felt would lead to success in the adult world. In other words, they were clinging to their individuality despite the feeling that their personal traits would not bring success in the adult world. Perhaps if they had made the sacrifice, their creative potential would have suffered irreparably. The Third Commandment might read, "Everything Thou Doest Must Be Perfect." Many children are likely to take criticism of their creative efforts as an attack upon themselves and their shortcomings. Although many adults are well-meaning in their criticisms, they are not adroit enough to make the comments constructive and to couple them with praise, if deserved. Parents and teachers should take a sincere interests in children's productions but must be careful not to give the same type of reinforcement to all of a child's artwork or inventions. It would be insincere to give uniform praise to both the banal and the inspired. The very crude product should be approached by an adult with an open mind. Though it would be hypocritical to praise the object, it could at least be accepted. This procedure, perhaps, would encourage the child to try again. Once the child has written, painted or constructed something containing an element of creative workmanship and talent, the entire product can be approved and its most imaginative elements can be praised. High accomplishments on the part of the child can be highly praised by the parent or the teacher. At this level, there are more outstanding than banal elements in the production and so the creative effort also can be constructively criticized. These suggestions are the opposite of the typical reaction from many adults who criticize a child's initial efforts, attempting to spur him into immediate success. All too often, an additional effort is not made and the child receives the impression that because his product was not perfect he is a failure. Other adults are incapable of enjoying crude productions, but, fearing that they may discourage the child's further efforts, give indiscriminate, uniform approval. Indiscriminate approval - which can be just as harmful as uniform rejection - is also given by parents who devaluate creative production and absent-mindedly compliment the child and by parents who feel that everything their child does is worthy of praise. The Fourth Commandment might be phrased, "Everyone Thou Knowest Must Like Thee." The need for universal acceptance is instilled at an early age and according to psychotherapist Albert Ellis, implies that it is a dire necessity to be approved by everyone (4). Unfortunately, Ellis added, this belief prevents individuals from developing their own self-respect, and instead of encouraging people to concentrate on loving others, it instills the fear of not being loved. The belief that one must be liked by everyone also interfaces with creative development. Social psychologists have repeatedly demonstrated that the pressure of one's peer group is a powerful inhibitor of creativity. In an attempt to circumvent this problem, Torrance divided children into homogenous groups - organizing entire classrooms of creative pupils. He found that the production of creative items and ideas was higher in these homogenous classes than when highly creative children were mixed with other children. Torrance's findings are in agreement with most research studies on homogenous grouping, although the issue is a controversial one and far from settled. (19). Homogenous grouping is not always possible. However, psychologists P.N. Pepinsky and H.B. Pepinsky reported, in 1958 that creative individuals can produce original ideas in heterogeneous groups (creative plus non-creative persons mixed together) if they develop certain strategies (11). These techniques include using the language and the verbal expressions employed by most of the group members, helping the other members of the group to see how the creative person's ideas will benefit them, demonstrate a respect for other group members, listening to the ideas of other group members, and joining in group projects. One example that comes to mind is Jim, an artist classmate of mine when I attended the University of Wisconsin. His university professors feared that living in a dormitory, where he was the only student majoring in art, would inhibit his creativity. Instead, Jim was one of the most popular men in the dormitory and continued to develop as an extremely fine artistic craftsman, Jim adopted all of the strategies mentioned by Pepinsky and Pepinsky. As a result, he was able to operate and interact with a group which might have been hostile to any other artistically inclined student. For example, Jim used the slang, colloquialisms, and vocabulary of his peer group. He gave all interested students a copies of his silk-screened artwork, designed the dormitory's homecoming parade float, and decorated the hall for dances and social events. He was a participant in the dormitory "bull sessions" and drinking parties and on one occasion, was disciplined by the university for joining in an inter-dormitory water fight. Jim did not subscribe to the illusion that he had to be university popular. However, he made an accommodation to the living situation in which he found himself without sacrificing his artistic training which was ultimately a more important goal than popularity. Commandment Five is Thou Shalt Not Prefer Solitude to Togetherness." The American classroom too often emphasizes enforced group interaction and group dynamics. Inventiveness is often stimulated by one's companions but for some types of creative performances the individual must structure his own project, proceed at his own rate, and ponder the issues in his own way. When a bright youngster spends a great deal of time alone in his room, when he prefers solitary hikes in the woods to group activities, or when he goes to a library instead of a party, parents and teachers often fear that he has become emotionally disturbed. It is true that an occasional student will spend an inordinate amount of time away from his peers, but adults need to be better versed in the difference between healthy solitude and morbid withdrawal. The former is a result of personal choice and is balanced with positive interpersonal relationships; the latter is compulsive and is paired with a rejection of offers of friendship from one's peers. Commandment Six could be phrased, "Remember Concentrated Attention and Keep it Holy." Philosopher Alan Watts noted that Western civilization has based its understanding of the world on concentrated attention - the "spotlight mind" - which analyzes the universe in "bits and pieces." As we do not have time to examine all of the "bits," we look at only those things and events which are relevant to survival, to social and financial advancement, and to other fixed goals. (18) It is, according to Watts, the "floodlight mind" which exposes ignored associations and brings to light unexpected details. Using the "floodlight mind" instead of the "spotlight mind" enables a person to look at things rather than for things. It opens up the possibility of surprise, of discovering relationships, and unifies an individual's perceptions without selling out to do so. Verbal thinking imposes categories, and categorization limits perception. Spotlight thinking is highly categorized, thus reinforcing an individual's limited perception. Floodlight thinking expands perception, breaks down categories, and permits new insights and appreciations to occur. The "spotlight mind" has its place in the creative process as it is important in the acquisition of verbal knowledge, but it also results in an attitude of seeking and straining. Watts stated that the brain should sometimes work "like a homing instincts of pidgeons and the formation of the fetus in the womb - without verbalizing the process." To this end, the "floodlight mind" is more advantageous than is the concentrated attention of the "spotlight mind." The 'floodlight mind" essential to creativity, is rarely identified and developed by American educators. Most educational methods focus on standard ways of perceiving things and on specific facts and data presented to an individual. Virtually ignored are responses to meaning and implications, intuitive feelings about the material as a whole, and a concern for possibilities and implications. However, psychologist D.W. MacKinnon. in his study on creative adults, found that 97 per cent depend more on intuitive processes for their insights than on direct data perception (9). It is no wonder that students by the tens of thousands have felt the need of turning to psychedelic drugs such as LSD and marijuana to obtain this intuitive method of coming into contact with their world. Commandment Seven is, "Thou Shalt Not Diverge From Culturally-Imposed Sex Norms." The American culture's misplaced emphasis on culturally determined sex roles results in many problems for imaginative children. Creativity, by its very nature, requires both sensitivity and independence. In the United States, sensitivity is regarded as a "feminine" trait while independence is looked upon as being a "masculine" characteristic. Torrance cited evidence to show that Americans regard the highly creative boy as a more "effeminate" than his peers and the highly creative girl as more "masculine" than her peers (15). Torrance also found many instances of children who have sacrificed their creativity to maintain their "masculinity" or "femininity." While administering a creativity test, Torrance asked a boy to think of ways a toy nurses kit. The boy responded, "I'm a boy! I don't play with things like that." Another creativity test involving a science toy evoked from a girl the retort, "I'm a girl. I'm not supposed to know anything about things like that." In elementary schools, the act of reading is often looked upon as "feminine" by boys because they have seen their mothers read more frequently than their fathers, because it is a sedentary activity, and because the first grade teacher is almost invariably a woman. This is one of the reasons why more boys than girls fail to master reading skills. In one of my studies, I discovered that boys referred to a reading clinic outnumbered girls by more than eight to one (8). Once students graduate from college, distorted concepts of sex roles again come into play, preventing many capable women from going on to graduate school. Society expects most women to become full-time homemakers and this expectancy takes its toll of able students. Another reason for the rarity of female graduate students is the American culture's irrational censure of the woman who attempts to become too highly educated and too successful professionally, especially in traditionally male occupations such as science, law, and medicine. It is often necessary to devise strategies to surmount these handicaps. If a boy is raised to feel secure in his maleness, if adults refrain from calling him a "little girl" or a "sissy," it is more than likely that his self concept will not be threatened as he is exposed to reading, painting, creative writing, dancing, and other worthwhile activities that the American culture has labeled "feminine." If a girl is brought up with a sense of pride in her developing womanhood, it is more likely than not that she will feel free to pursue her own educational and vocational interests. Furthermore, she will feel free to pursue them in a noncompulsive way, whether the interests involve marriage, a career, or both. Playing the "masculinity - femininity game" adroitly is a demanding task for parents and teachers but it can produce children who are secure enough in their biological sex roles that they can afford to be flexible in regard to what their culture considers "masculine" and "feminine" behavior/ Children with accurate body images and healthy attitudes toward sexual organs and their functions, will be less likely to sacrifice creative pursuits for fear of being called a "sissy" or a "tomboy." Commandment Eight reads, "Thou Shalt Not Express Excessive Emotional Feeling." Highly creative people are likely to be highly emotional people because access to their personal feelings is one trait that enables them to be imaginative. Creative individuals have a reputation for rebellion, but their rebellious behavior may have its source in independence of thought rather than in malice. Parents and teachers who mistake rebellion for unruliness are often puzzled by the wit and humor of highly creative students. The parents of one creative ten-year-old we interviewed at the Kent State University Child Study Center were alarmed because their son had written a recipe for "Vampire Punch": "Take one quart of gingerale, mix with two quarts of human blood, garnish with a dozen eyeballs, and serve warm." We counseled the parents that this was typical of the humor original children often display in pre-adolescence. This advice proved to be well-founded; within six months the boy had purchased a chemistry set and was concocting mixtures of a different type. Teachers often feel threatened by strong displays of feeling on the part of their pupils. A child who reads with a great deal of expression, or paints with extremely bright colors, or songs with joy and gusto may be urged to "tone down" his fervor. Other parents and teachers have been alarmed over what they perceive as sexual precocity, as when a 15-year-old boy, interested in biology chartered the menstrual cycle of his girlfriend over a two year period. Drug experimentation also concerns adults and there were verified reports of high school students manufacturing LSD in the school chemistry laboratory without the knowledge of their teacher. If the American society wishes to foster intellectual inventiveness, it will have to risk granting the creative student a high degree of autonomy. Society must be prepared to accept certain results of this autonomy which are creative in nature but which fail to comply with established cultural norms. Commandment Nine reads, Thou Shalt Not Be Ambiguous." Americans find it difficult to tolerate paradoxes. When a creative student lists his vocational preference as "art or law" or as "music or engineering," his parents and high school teachers are likely to brand him as indecisive. In reality, he may be tempted by several different careers, seeing the possibilities in each. Unfortunately, few adults are capable of supporting the tentativeness which often characterizes the gifted adolescent's attitude toward vocations. Instead, teachers and parents tend to exert pressures toward a premature decision which often proves to be unwise. Adults also tend to be intolerant of the "intellectual playfulness" often displayed by creative youngsters. Gifted boys and girls may debate the proposition that "God is dead," taking one position one day and a different the next day. They may toss back and forth the advantages and disadvantages of wife-swapping, suicide, interracial dating, mercykilling, and other topics that their parents would hesitate to discuss with their closest friends. Yet these same young people are usually capable of making wise, responsible decisions when the circumstances require them to do so. Commandment Ten might be phrased, "Thou Shalt Not Rock The Cultural Boat." Some children, upon reporting a vivid dream to their parents or teachers are admonished, "Be careful who you tell those things to or people will think that you're crazy." The American culture pays little attention to the inner life and the child's hidden worlds of dreams, fantasy, and imagination usually stay hidden - even from the child himself. The same pattern holds for critical thinking and curiosity. One of Torrance's findings was that teachers do not appreciate a child who asks a great many questions. One second grade boy, tested by Paul Witty and me at Northwestern University's Psycho-Educational Clinic, was referred by his teacher who suspected that he was intellectually retarded. On an intelligence test, however, the boy's IQ exceeded 200. In an interview, the boy explained that his first grade teacher had become so upset over his questions that he had decided it would be better to remain quiet once he entered the second grade. These Ten Commandments are implicit rather than explicit, in the American Culture. Nevertheless, they must be broken, circumvented, or compromised before creativity can be effectively stimulated in our homes and schools. * This paper was prepared for presentation at the 14th Annual Meeting of the National Association for Gifted Children, Hartford, Conn., May 1967 Dr, Krippner is Senior Research Associate, Community Mental Health center, Dream laboratory, malmonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, N.Y. The Gifted Child Quarterly - Autumn, 1967
10/19/99
Dr. Stanley Krippner
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