How Creative Are You

How Creative Are You?

by Eugene Raudsepp

Creative thinking tests generally fall into a few categories. The most prevalent type are known as 'Task-Oriented' that measure one's fluency and flexibility in generating new ideas. Another category of test is "Personality-Based" which focuses on personality traits, attitudes, motivations, values, and interests. The latter type of test measures the variables that predispose a person to think creatively. The partial test listed below was developed by Princeton Creative Research, Inc in Princeton, New Jersey.

Testing Instructions

After each statement, indicate with a letter the degree or extent with which you agree or disagree with the statement:

• A = strongly agree
• B = agree
• C = in between or I don't know
• D = disagree
• E = strongly disagree

Mark your answers as accurately and as frankly as possible. Try not to "second guess" how a creative person might respond to each statement.

1. I always work with a great deal of certainty that I'm following the correct procedures for solving a particular problem. ____.
2. It would be a waste of time for me to ask questions if I had no hope of obtaining answers. ____.
3. I believe that a logical step-by-step method is best for solving problems. ____.
4. I occasionally voice opinions in groups that seem to turn some people off. ____.
5. I spend a great deal of time thinking about what others think of me. ____.
   
   
6. I feel that I may have a special contribution to give to the world. ____.
7. It is more important for me to do what I believe to be right than to try to win the approval of others. ____.
8. People who seem unsure and uncertain about things lose my respect. ____.
9. I am able to stick with difficult problems over extended periods of time. ____.
10. On occasion I get overly enthusiastic about things. ____.
    
    
11. I often get my best ideas when doing nothing in particular. ____.
12. I rely on intuitive hunches and the feeling of 'rightness' or 'wrongness' when moving toward the solution of a problem. ____.
13. When problem solving, I work faster analyzing the problem and slower when synthesizing the information I've gathered. ____.
14. I like hobbies which involve collecting things. ____.
15. Daydreaming has provided the impetus for many of my more important projects. ____.
    
    
16. If I had to choose from two occupations other than the one that I now have, I would rather be a physician than an explorer. ____.
17. I can get along more easily with people if they belong to about the same social and business class as myself. ____.
18. I have a high degree of aesthetic sensitivity. ____.
19. Intuitive hunches are unreliable guides in problem solving. ____.
20. I am much more interested in coming up with new ideas than I am in trying to sell them to others. ____.
    
    
21. I tend to avoid situations in which I might feel inferior. ____.
22. In evaluating information, the source of it is more important to me than the content. ____.
23. I like people who follow the rule "business before pleasure". ____.
24. One's own self-respect is much more important than the respect of others. ____.
25. I feel people who strive for perfection are unwise. ____.
    
    
26. I like work in which I must influence others. ____.
27. It is important for me to have a place for everything and everything in its place. ____.
28. People who are willing to entertain 'crackpot' ideas are impractical. ____.
29. I rather enjoy fooling around with new ideas even if there is no practical payoff. ____.
30. When a certain approach to a problem doesn't work, I can quickly reorient my thinking. ____.
    
    
31. I don't like to ask questions that show ignorance. ____.
32. I am able to more easily change my interests to pursue a job or career than I can change a job to pursue my interests. ____.
33. Inability to solve a problem is frequently due to asking the wrong questions. ____.
34. I can frequently anticipate the solution to my problems. ____.
35. It is a waste of time to analyze one's failures. ____.
    
    
36. Only fuzzy thinkers resort to metaphors and analogies. ____.
37. At times I have so enjoyed the ingenuity of a crook that I hoped he or she would go scotfree. ____.
38. I frequently begin work on a problem which I can only dimly sense and not yet express. ____.
39. I frequently tend to forget things such as names of people, streets, highways, small towns, etc. ____.
40. I feel that hard work is the basic factor in success. ____.
    
    
41. To be regarded as a good team member is important to me. ____.
42. I know how to keep my inner impulses in check. ____.
43. I am a thoroughly dependable and responsible person. ____.
44. I resent things being uncertain and unpredictable. ____.
45. I prefer to work with others in a team effort rather than solo. ____.
    
    
46. The trouble with many people is that they take things to seriously. ____.
47. I am frequently haunted by my problems and cannot let go of them. ____.
48. I can easily give up immediate gain or comfort to reach the goals I have set. ____.
49. If I were a college professor, I would rather teach factual courses than those involving theory. ____.
50. I'm attracted to the mystery of life. ____.
    
    

Scoring Instructions

To compute your percentage score, circle and add up the values assigned to each item.

          A         B         C          D         E
       Strongly   Agree   In-Between  Disagree  Strongly
        Agree                 or                Disagree
                          Don't Know


1.        -2       -1         0          +1       +2
2.        -2       -1         0          +1       +2
3.        -2       -1         0          +1       +2
4.        +2       +1         0          -1       -2
5.        -2       -1         0          +1       +2

6.        +2       +1         0          -1       -2
7.        +2       +1         0          -1       -2
8.        -2       -1         0          +1       +2
9.        +2       +1         0          -1       -2
10.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

11.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
12.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
13.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
14.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
15.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

16.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
17.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
18.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
19.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
20.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

21.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
22.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
23.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
24.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
25.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2

26.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
27.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
28.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
29.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
30.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

31.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
32.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
33.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
34.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
35.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2

36.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
37.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
38.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
39.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
40.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

41.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
42.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
43.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
44.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
45.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2

46.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
47.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
48.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2
49.       -2       -1         0          +1       +2
50.       +2       +1         0          -1       -2

 80 to 100   Very Creative

 60 to 79     Creative

 40 to 59     Average

 20 to 39     Below Average

-100 to 19   Noncreative

Bibliography