PRODUCT

by David EJ Felker

            What is a creative product?   How do we know if it is creative?   What defines it to be a

product?   These three important questions about product will be answered within this article.

You will learn about the work of MacKinnon, Besemer, and how to protect your ideas.   Of the

4P’s, Product is the least examined area.   MacKinnon (1978, P.187) stated “I would argue that

the starting point, indeed the bedrock of all studies of creativity, is an analysis of creative

products”.

           Hilgard (1959, p.162) speaks about the importance of products and the creative problem solving process.   He Stated:

                “The capacity to create useful or beautiful products and to find ways of

                resolving perplexity is not limited to the highly gifted person, but is the 

                birthright of every  person of average talent.   Because I believe these

                symposia to be concerned primarily with ways of bringing the best out of

                people, I have chosen to consider how we might best encourage creativity  

                and problem solving approach among those with whom we deal, whether

                they be children in our homes, students in our classes, or workers in our 

                factories,  offices, and laboratories”.

           (Iskaksen, Dorval, &Treffinger, 1994, p. 8) “Creative products can be found in the arts, sciences, the humanities, and in any discipline or domain of human endeavor.  They can be the result of the efforts of individuals or groups.  They may be varying degrees of novelty and usefulness”.

            These authors bring up an important point.   Any person, no matter what field they are in

or, how educated they are, can create a creative product.   You have already learned about style

(How you are creative?) and level (How creative are you?).   Here are some examples of

Adaptive and Innovative products.

Products can also be tangible and intangible.   A tangible product is one that you can see, feel,

and taste.   An intangible product is a thought or an idea (i.e. Song, poem, or E=MC2).

MacKinnon

            MacKinnon was one of the first people to do extensive work in the area of product.   His

work covers two different areas.   These areas are criteria for creative products and the affect

style.

            MacKinnon (1978, P.50-1) feels that there are five criterion to make a product a creative product.   The first criterion is novelty.   The product must be original.   The second is adaptive to reality.   The product must solve a problem.   The third criterion is it must be evaluated, elaborated, developed, and communicated to other.   The product must be produced.   The fourth criterion is the product must be aesthetically pleasing.   The product must look good.   The fifth and final criterion is the product must transform human existance.

            MacKinnon also feels there are two different types of creativity artistic and scientific.   This ties heavily into style (How you are creative?).   MacKinnon ties it directly to the products that are created and how these styles affect the creation of these products.

CPAM

            CPAM or Creative Product Analysis Matrix is a model that was created by Susan Besemer.    Besemer’s work derived from the work of MacKinnon.   You will see in her model some of the same criterion MacKinnon mentioned.   Besemer saw the need to analyze products.   Besemer and O’Quinn (1993, p. 332) state that

“ products are the artifacts of the creative process which give, through analysis, insights into the process and the personality of the maker who created them.  This is one of the prime reasons for studying creative products”.

            (Besemer,1980)CPAM is broken down by three scales (see figure xy). These scales are Novelty, Resolution, and Elaboration & Synthesis.   Novelty is the extent of newness of the product.   Resolution is the degree to which the product fits or meets the needs of the problematic situation.   Elaboration & Synthesis is the degree to which the product combines unlike elements into a refined, developed, and coherent whole.            

            Within each scale are subscales (see figure x).   They ask specific questions about the scale.   They help to define the scale and rate the product.           

            Novelty has three subscales.   These three subscales are Original, Transformational, and Germinal.   An original product is unusual or it is infrequently seen in a universe of products made by people with similar experience and training.   A transformational product is so revolutionary that it focuses a shift in the way that reality is perceived by it’s users, listeners, or viewers.   A germinal product is likely to suggest additional, future creative products.

            Resolution has three subscales.   These subscales are Valuable, Logical, and Useful.   A valuable product is judged worthy by users,  listeners, or viewers because it fills a financial, physical, social, or psychological need.    A logical product or solution follows the accepted or understood rules for the discipline.   A useful product follows the practical applications.

            Elaboration & Synthesis have four subscales.   These subscales are Elegant, Complex vs. Simple, Understandable, and Well-Crafted.   An elegant product is one that the solution is expressed in a refined, understandable way.   A complex vs. simple product contains many elements at one or more levels vs. a product that is basic.   An understandable product is presented in a communicative, understandable manner.   A well-crafted product has been worked and reworked with care to develop it to its highest possible level for that time.

Protecting Your Ideas

          When it comes to protecting your ideas there are three different ways.   They are a

copyright, trademark, and a patent.   All there are very important and cover three different kinds

of ideas (Webster’s, 1988).  

          The first is a copyright.    You may have seen this symbol, ã ,on a product.   A copyright is

the exclusive right, granted by law,  to written and artistic work.   This means that plays, poems,

paintings can all be copyrighted.

         The next is a trademark.   The trademark, ä ,also has a symbol that is well known.   A

trademark is the design and wording used to distinguish a product.            

A trademark that became everyday language is Band-Aid.   The product is actually a bandage.

         And finally is the Patent.   The patent does not have a symbol.   The product will read U.S.

Patent or Patent Pending.   A patent protects inventions.   An example of this would be a new

car by Chevrolet.

Bibliography

Anderson, H. (ED.). (1959). Creativity and it’s cultivation. Hilgard, E. “Creativity and problem solving. New York: Harper and Row.

Besemer, S. P.(1980). Review and synthesis of the literature: Analysis of creative products. Buffalo, NY: SUCB Thesis project.

Besemer, S. P. & O’Quinn, K. (1989). The development, reliability, and validity of the revised creative problem semantic scale. Creative Research Journal. (2) p. 267-278.

Isaksen, S. G., Dorval, K. B. & Treffinger, D. J. (1994). Creative approaches to problem solving. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/ Hunt.

MacKinnon, D. W. (1978). In search of human effectiveness: Identifying and developing creativity. Buffalo, NY: Creative Education Foundation.

Neufeldt, V. (ED) (1988). Webster’s new world dictionary: Third college edition. Cleveland, OH: Simon & Schuster.