The Impact of Creativity Training on an Accounting Negotiation

Abstract

There is renewed interest in the factors that affect negotiations, as they are a significant part of organizational life. While we understand that there are many barriers to effectively reaching optimal solutions in a negotiation, we are still unclear as to the means by which to meet this goal. In this paper, we offer creativity training as a possible antecedent to effective negotiation. Our results show that individuals trained to think creatively reached more integrative solutions or solutions that were mutually beneficial to all negotiation participants than individuals who did not receive creativity training. We discuss implications and future research.Keywords Creativity in negotiations · Negotiations · Creativity · Creativity training · ExperimentThe creativity construct has been well researched, and scholars have provided support for the theoretical perspective that creativity is essential to organizations' sustainability (Ramus 2001;Woodman et al. 1993). Creativity is the ability to generate or produce ideas, insights, or solutions that are original, novel, and unique (i.e., that were not previously available or present), but that are also relevant to solving ill-defined problems (these solutions are appropriate to and useful given the context of the problem) (Ama-

Toward a New Understanding of Creative Dynamics: From One-Size-Fits-All Models to Multiple and Dynamic Forms of Creativity

“…Stephen Cummings, Chris Bilton, and dt ogilvie creative "talents". " [T]his view that creativity is the province of only a few individuals pushes the organization to focus more on finding those few people than on viewing its entire workforce as a potentially creative resource" (ogilvie & Simms, 2008). Multimodal creativity requires a more proactive approach, combining and configuring different modes of thinking and individual capabilities.…”

Suspicious spirits, flexible minds: When distrust enhances creativity.

“…Trust seems to further tendencies such as providing/exchanging information (De Dreu et al, 1998) and adopting cooperative goals (Liu & Wang, 2010), which are conducive to attaining mutuallybeneficial agreements (e.g., Beersma & De Dreu, 2005;De Dreu & Van Kleef, 2004;Thompson, 1991). Additionally, information search (Sinaceur, 2010;Thompson, 1991) and creative thinking (e.g., Kurtzberg, 1998;Ogilvie & Simms, 2009;see also De Dreu, Giacomantonio, Shalvi, & Sligte, 2009;Maddux & Galinsky, 2009) have been shown to be beneficial to reaching high joint outcomes. Creativity may be helpful not only in generating new alternatives for potentially mutually-acceptable agreements, but also in asking smart questions when seeking information from the negotiation partner (cf., Kurtzberg, 1998).…”

Toward a New Understanding of Creative Dynamics: From One-Size-Fits-All Models to Multiple and Dynamic Forms of Creativity

“…[T]his view that creativity is the province of only a few individuals pushes the organization to focus more on finding those few people than on viewing its entire workforce as a potentially creative resource" (ogilvie & Simms, 2008). Multimodal creativity requires a more proactive approach, combining and configuring different modes of thinking and individual capabilities.…”

“…The kind of leadership competences best suited to creative organizations are the ability to broker connections; accept and embrace the idea that creativity is multiple and messy and that the process is fraught with failure; believe "that everyone had the potential to be creative" but may need training to unleash that creativity (Light, 1997;ogilvie, 1999;ogilvie & Simms, 2008); and understand that leadership in such contexts often means handing the reins to others to give them the authority to lead creativity not from the front or top of the organization, but from the middle, or even from the bottom. The creative leader not only creates a "culture of creativity" (Kelley, 1997;ogilvie & McDaniel, 2004) that fosters conditions for creativitying by driving out fear and promoting courage, they recognize that creativity is not only about generating new ideas; it requires a series of further creative acts, creativitying, to convert the novel idea into a valuable outcome.…”