The purpose of this study was to explore possible explanations of the decline in old age of highly creative contributions. This present study examined whether two explanations were more important than decrements in intelligence. These were (1) decrements in specific divergent thinking abilities and (2) a decline in preference for complexity. Specific creative abilities (divergent thinking) were measured by Guilford tests of redefinition, originality, adaptive flexibility, and ideational fluency. Preference for complexity was measured by the Barron-Welsh Art Scale. These tests were given to 111 teachers ranging in age from 20 to 83 years. The results showed that older subjects were as intelligent as younger subjects but that they performed less well on the Guilford tests and had a lower preference for complexity. Hence, the age differences on Guilford’s tests and the Barron-Welsh Art Scale are more plausible explanations for the age changes in creative contributions. Furthermore, scores on the Guilford tests and those on the Barron-Welsh Art Scale were not correlated. Therefore, it was suggested that the Guilford tests measured ability components of creativity whereas the Barron-Welsh Art Scale measures a motivational component of creativity.

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The purpose of this study was to examine sex differences of young, middle-aged, and older adults in creative problem solving and preference for complexity of visual figures and to explore the part degree of sex role identification might play in this relationship. 111 teachers, aged 20–83 years, took a battery of seven creativity tests, two intelligence measures, and the masculinity-femininity scale of the MMPI. Sex differences were found on only one creativity test (p < 0.01); this test taps figural abilities. No sex differences were found on the Barron-Welsh art scale and semantic transformation tests (p > 0.05). Degree of sex role identification was not found to be significantly related to creativity (p > 0.05).

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