Browsing by Author "Clapp, Ray"
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    An exploration of problem-solving style through the lens of psychological climate, cognitive style and idea style measures
    (Bangkok : Assumption University, 2023) Clapp, Ray ; Vorapot Ruckthum
    There is a growing interest in a more inclusive conception of the activity of the ‘change process’ (person, product, process and press) particularly the aspects of the creative sub-process concerned with person and product. The variables Cognitive style and Idea style, have a common heritage that is rooted in a dichotomy concerned at one end with ‘adaption’ (improvements) while at the other end with ‘innovation’ (novelty). These characteristics have been used to describe the ‘creative concept’ where to date the emphasis has been on the pole concerned with ‘innovation continuum’. The pole is hence also concerned with adaption, but while the pole being a necessary and central aspect of both variables has nevertheless received relatively little attention. In this study, the primary objective was therefore to evaluate the coherence of Kirton’s ‘cognitive style’ measure of adaptive – innovative behavioural preferences with the measures of Idea styles. Therefore, another related objective was to evaluate the relationship between the cognitive style and ‘psychological climate’, consisting of ideas generated and problems identified as sub-components. The results show the ‘innovative pole’ of cognitive style is significantly related to both innovative idea style and the quantity of ideas generated (it is also explicitly supported by the facets of the personality variable ‘openness’). However, while a negative relationship between cognitive style and the adaptive style of ideas is a central aspect of Kirton’s cognitive style theory, no significant negative relationship was found. Instead, the adaptive style of ideas has a positive relationship to a factor within the measure of psychological climate or ‘the opportunity to contribute to change’. These findings position Kirton’s cognitive style measure as primarily in the domain of ‘personality’ and only partially coherent with the domain of ‘idea style’ the latter a carrier, rather than ‘a component of style’. Furthermore, while the variables of cognitive style and psychological climate show no significant relationship, they provide differential support to the ‘first two stages’ of the change process.
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    Creative problem-solving in countries east and west: some organizational implications
    ( 2019) Clapp, Ray ; Vorapot Ruckthum
    Creativity and creative problem-solving are supported by two different cognitive styles, one concerned with adaption (doing things better), and the other with innovation (doing things differently). The current preoccupation with innovation would appear to favour western countries where a more innovative cultural bias exists. Furthermore, countries from the East would appear disadvantaged due to a similar bias towards adaption. However, organisations to sustain success need a diversity of style irrespective of the significance of any social or organisational leadership bias towards a single style. The pursuit of a dominant single style, be it adaption or innovation, leads to a diminishing organisational performance albeit by different routes.
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    The cross-cultural use of the Kirton adaption-innovation inventory: a further exploration
    ( 2017) Clapp, Ray ; Vorapot Ruckthum
    English language measures such as the bipolar scale of cognitive style (Kirton, 2005) are not easily understood by people within diverse cultures and languages where English is spoken as a second language. Particularly the scoring of opposites when many items represent each end of the dimensional continuum and where items that represent one of the poles are reverse scored to produce the final score. Understanding can be improved by using a translation of item meaning into the target language. However, a more efficient method is the use of items with bipolar scoring scales to resolve the problem of accurate recognition and scoring of opposites while at the same time eliminating the scoring anchor and any associated social desirability contamination.
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    Diversity, creative style and problem-solving : a discussion of outcome and organizational implications
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2022) Vorapot Rucktum ; Clapp, Ray
    If innovative change is followed by more innovation, costs tend to rise, and the organisation moves towards a more chaotic form. The opposite occurs where innovation is avoided, adaptive ideas predominate, and organisations move towards a more predictable form with low differentiation between competitors. By continuing with either style to the point where profitability is affected, the organisation moves towards the lower end of performance ranking for the sector albeit by different routes. To avoid this position, it is necessary to have enough stylistic diversity available to the team or the organisation to both generate ideas and make decisions that offer a situational advantage. Without such diversity, a diminishing organisational performance can be expected.
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    An evaluation of the relationships between psychological climate and the styles of cognitive preference and manifest ideas
    ( 2017) Clapp, Ray ; Vorapot Ruckthum
    This study challenges the assumption that the bipolar characteristics of adaption and innovation associated with individual cognitive style preferences directly characterise the content of manifest ideas and in turn the characteristics of organisational change. The findings show psychological climate (in support of the organisational change process) used in this study is significantly related to ideas with adaptive characteristics, but less so to those with innovative characteristics. Furthermore, cognitive style is significantly related to the characteristics of innovative ideas but much less so to adaptive ideas. These two relationships show how the bi-polar characteristics of the Adaptive -Innovative continuum fits with the two characteristics of the manifest ideas where the latter appears as independent. However, while cognitive style and psychological climate have significant relationships with both styles of ideas, climate dominates for ideas with adaptive characteristics, and cognitive style dominates for ideas with innovative characteristics. The lack of a relationship between psychological climate and cognitive style suggests that psychological climate and cognitive style can be considered as independent predictors of adaptive and innovative idea characteristics respectively.