Personality differences and group versus individual brainstorming

This study examined the effects of personality (psychoticism) and nominal vs real groups using brainstorming techniques in problem solving. Subjects either brainstormed three problems on their own, in pairs or in four person groups consisting of similar personality scores. There were six dependent measures: total number of non-redundant ideas; number of ‘superior’ responses; a rating on the quality of the ideas; the percentage of superior responses; a creativity production rate and a self-rating of imaginativeness. It was predicted that high P scorers brainstorming alone would have the highest creative scores but when they interact with similar types of individuals in group settings, their superior score rate would be overtaken by equivalent groups of low creative individuals. This prediction was supported for four person groups on the number and percentage of superior response measures and the mean creative rate measure. Dyads total creativity scores were always lower than four person nominal or real groups or two individuals working alone. There were almost no significant interactions between personality type, group size or the tasks used. Implications for organizations is discussed and the direction of future research is examined.