Abstract
Objective of the study: To compare whether personality and mental health status of creative artists is similar to or different from that of neurotic and normal individuals.
Method: It has been fairly clear that creativity is the ‘sui generis’ of several factors both within and without i.e., personality factors, environmental influences, intellectual functions, adjustment and the like. Event to get a fairly representative picture of the role and contribution of the above factors through any one test would be far from being satisfactory, and at best provides only a fragmented view.
Therefore, it was necessary to select such tests which would throw light on the areas that were chosen in the present study (i.e., personality and mental health). In the words of Guilford no single test of creative ability can be expected to give a composite picture. Hence, the following tests were selected for the study:
Biographical data sheet,
Wallach-Kogan Battery of Creativity Instruments (1972),
Rorschach Ink blot test (Klopfer Bruno, 1954),
Sacks Sentence Completion Test (1950),
Delusions Symptoms States Inventory (Foulds, and Bedford, 1977).
Selection of subjects: The study consisted of 3 groups (1) Creative, (2) Neurotic, and (3) Normal. Each of the three groups consisted of 30 individuals. The groups had both men and women of comparable ratio. Medium age for the groups was 35 years. Those who were in the creative group were older in age as compared to the neurotic group and the normal group.
The creative group of subjects were selected for the criterion of manifest creativity in the form of original contribution in the area of their chosen field. The artists hailed from fine arts subjects like music, poetry, painting, literature, drama, and dance. The neurotic subjects were taken from the outpatient department of the Institute. The normal group consisted of such individuals in the community who were not known for the presence of either creativity or psychopathology.
The tests were administered individually, scoring and interpretation of the tests were carried out according to the Manuals.
Summary of the results: The creative subjects performed significantly better on Wallach-Kogan tests than normals and neurotics. The age of creative subjects did not affect the performance on the test. On Rorschach test they were found to have rich imagination. They indicated the ability to make use of unconscious resources and give expression to the inner experiences an artist touch without detriment to their own ego. They were capable of viewing their problems and conflicts objectively and dispassionately in spite of having oppositional tendencies at the intellectual level.
On Sentence Completion Test they were found to be withdrawing, neither having a desire to interfere with others, nor tolerating others' interference with them. They showed strong and positive self-concept.
On Delusions – Symptoms – States Inventory they happened to have some degree of anxiety and depression, though less than the neurotic group, and slightly more than the normal group.
Thus the results indicated differences between the creative group and the normal and neurotic groups on the above tests.