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K.Unrath.Thesis.Final.pdf (185.04 MB)

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Collaborative Creativity in the Physical Work Environment: A Pre-Test, Intervention, Post-Test Case Study

Unrath, Katie C
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1408949815

Abstract Details

2014, Master of Fine Arts, Ohio State University, Industrial, Interior Visual Communication Design.
There is little research on the relationship between the physical work environment and group creativity. Components within a physical work environment could potentially affect the users' perceptions of their own creativity or the creativity that they experience with others. The increase of creative work output as a standard in various work settings today requires that further research be completed to better understand the nuanced relationship between the physical work environment and group creativity. Various entities such as Google have taken this relationship very seriously, experimenting with a wide variety of environments to support their creative workforces. The experiential work environment is comprised of many elements within a complex system. Researchers are still working on outlining the components of this system, how these components relate to one another and how this system relates to creativity. Important questions relative to this relationship may include: How might an individual's (or a group's) perception of creativity (feeling creative) be affected by the physical work environment? What is the relationship of mood to creativity within an environment? What is the role of tools and materials to creativity within an environment? How might participatory design methods, the codesign of a workspace, affect the ownership and/or stewardship of a work environment? This research attempts to address these questions through the study of a group of creative workers who, by accounts of existing research on the topic, worked in a physical environment that did not support creativity. This group was able to function as creative professionals and students within this ill suited (pre-test) environment and was documented doing so for a 113 day period. This group then participated in co-designing their work environment to better support their creativity, which was implemented soon after. Finally, this group was documented working in their co-designed (post-test) environment for a 115 day period to determine if the changes to the environment had lasting impacts on their perceptions of creativity. The co-designed post-test physical environment had a positive impact on this group's perceptions of creativity, at both individual and group levels. This may be, in part, due to a more comforting atmosphere that allowed the users of the post-test environment to be happier while working in the spaces. The workspaces developed through co-design encouraged encounters with others and with creation supplies, which impacted their creativity. The engagement in the design process of their work environment directly affected their perceptions of ownership of the workspaces, in particular, a sense of group ownership. This sense of group ownership had a positive impact on the stewardship of their environment. The results of this research support the notion that work environments, when planned appropriately, can enhance group creative collaborative efforts. A new framework has been developed by the investigator, which visualizes a system for the creative work environment. This system includes: the people, the culture of the workplace, the artifacts, the functional features of resources and space and the inspirational features of resources and space. This framework is a starting point for envisioning the creative work environment system as an active, evolving entity comprised of not only the physical elements of the environment but also how people experience and interact within the physical environment.
Elizabeth B.-N. Sanders, Ph.D. (Advisor)
Susan Melsop (Committee Member)
David Staley, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
351 p.
Architecture; Design; Interior Design
co-design; design research; interior design; creative space; creative workspace; creative workplace; creativity supplies; creativity materials; creativity artifacts; group creativity; collaborative creativity; individual creativity; design intervention

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Unrath, K. C. (2014). Collaborative Creativity in the Physical Work Environment: A Pre-Test, Intervention, Post-Test Case Study [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1408949815

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Unrath, Katie. Collaborative Creativity in the Physical Work Environment: A Pre-Test, Intervention, Post-Test Case Study. 2014. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1408949815.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Unrath, Katie. "Collaborative Creativity in the Physical Work Environment: A Pre-Test, Intervention, Post-Test Case Study." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2014. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1408949815

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1408949815
563
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.