A Tale of Two Generations: Creativity Growth and Gender Differences Over a Period of Education and Curriculum Reforms

Abstract

The Wallach–Kogan Creativity Tests were translated into Chinese and later fully computerized for research in Hong Kong. The normative data of two cohorts (1994 and 2002) of school children were employed to test the hypothesis that growth in creative thinking occurs in a society or culture during a period of education and curriculum reforms that emphasize creative thinking. Results of multivariate analysis of variance and subsequent univariate analysis of variance supported the hypothesis. Moreover, some interesting gender differences in creativity growth were observed, underlining the fact that boys and girls should be treated differentially to obtain a desirable creativity growth for them.

Acknowledgments

Financial support from the Research Grants Council (RGC) and Quality Education Fund (QEF) is acknowledged. The authors thank Michael Wallach and Nathan Kogan for their kind permission in the Chinese translation and electronic development of their Wallach–Kogan Creativity Tests.

The normative samples for the Wallach–Kogan Creativity Tests from a RGC project and a QEF project were combined for analysis in this comparative study. The authors were co-principal investigators of the RGC project and co-project leaders of the QEF project.

Notes

Note. N1 = 1994 data. N2 = 2002 data.

Note. N1 = 1994 data. N2 = 2002 data.

Note. N1 = 1994 data. N2 = 2002 data.

Note. N1 = 1994 data. N2 = 2002 data.