ANU: GPS 612 Creative thinking in Governance

Discuss the concept of Creative thinking in governance. (10 Marks)

• Creative thinking encourages governance practitioners to use a variety of approaches
to solve problems, analyse multiple viewpoints, adapt ideas, and arrive at new
solutions.
• Sometimes it is referred to as divergent thinking.
• Strategies can be introduced using direct instruction in creative problem solving
models and creative thinking processes.
• The processes are generally considered to be fluency, flexibility, originality, and
elaboration.
• Creative thinking is:
 is imaginative
 generates many possible solutions
 is divergent
 is lateral
Explain the five main types of creative thinking that one may use in governance (10 Marks)
• Divergent thinking: Exaggeration
• Lateral thinking: Out of the box
• Aesthetic thinking: Beauty and taste
• Systems thinking: Synthesis towards a whole
Explains forms through which creative thinking is demonstrated in a governance institution
(10 Marks)
Creative thinking is expressed in several ways. Here are some of the types of creative
thinking you might see in a governance workplace.
• Analysis: Before thinking creatively about something, you first have to be able to
understand it. This requires the ability to examine things carefully to know what they
mean. Whether you are looking at a text, a data set, a lesson plan, or an equation, you
need to be able to analyse it first.
• Open-Mindedness: To think creatively, set aside any assumptions or biases you may
have, and look at things in a completely new way. By coming to a problem with an
open mind, you allow yourself the chance to think creatively.
• Problem-Solving: Employers want creative employees who will help them to solve
work-related issues. When faced with a problem, consider ways that you can solve it
before asking for help. If you need the input of a manager, suggest solutions rather
than just presenting problems.
• Organization: This might seem counterintuitive: Aren’t creative people known for
being somewhat disorganized? Actually, organization is an essential part of creativity.
While you might need to get a bit messy when trying out a new idea, you need to
organize your ideas so others will understand and follow through with your vision.
• Communication: People will only appreciate your creative idea or solution if you
communicate it effectively. You need to have strong written and oral communication
skills. You also need to be able to understand a situation fully before thinking
 creatively about it. That means you also need to be a good listener. You may come up
with a unique solution by asking the right questions and listening to the answers.
Discuss the characteristics of creative thinkers in governance (10 Marks)
Creative thinkers value ideas that’s why they often share the following traits:
• open-mindedness
• willingness to take risks
• strong interest in learning and new discoveries
• flexibility and adaptability
• great in written and oral communication
Discuss the strategies one may employ to improve his/her creative thinking skills (10 Marks)
• Brainstorm ideas
• Mind maps
• Reframe your way of thinking
• Role play
• Reconceptualise problems
• Explore the different creativity theories
• Daydream
• Ask a lot of questions
• Determine your best mood to create
• Distance yourself from the noise
• Just start
Expound on the four ways to hone your creative thinking skills (5 Marks)
• Participate in experiential learning
• Find inspirations around you
• Understand your learning style and passion
• Join activities that encourage creativity
Explain approaches you may take to improve your creative thinking governance (10 Marks)
• Develop creative courage: Many people lack the courage to use a creative approach
in their workplace. Almost all creative people feel inadequate in some way, but it is
how they deal with that feeling of inadequacy that is important.
• Be a lifelong leader: The pace of change in our culture has an enormous benefit—we
must constantly change and reinvent ourselves. Those who remain static sink.
• Achieve a work/life balance: Creative people choose a lifestyle and then try to work
out what they have to do to achieve it.
• Listen to feedback: Creative people are able to listen to criticism, assess it and then
act on it.
• Steal ideas: Creative people often remake a work that has inspired and impressed
them. In remaking it, they transform it into something new.
Explain the benefits of creative thinking in governance in Africa (10 Marks)
• Encourages risk-taking
• Develops the ability to deal with ambiguity and unstructured problems
 • Helps governance practitioners appreciate multiple perspectives
• Promotes innovation
• Encourages independent learning
Explain the situations where creative strategy is useful in governance (5 Marks)
Situations where the strategy is useful:
• For enrichment
• To engage a governance practitioner’s natural curiosity
• To apply information that has been learned in solving a particular governance issue
• To infuse challenging learning opportunities into the core governance tools such as
policies.
Elucidate on the three main types of creativity involving different ways of generating
governance ideas (6 Marks)
According to Boden (1998), there are three main types of creativity, involving different ways
of generating the novel ideas:
• The “combinational” creativity that involves new combinations of familiar ideas.
• The “exploratory” creativity that involves the generation of new ideas by the
exploration of structured concepts.
• The “transformational” creativity that involves the transformation of some dimension
of the structure, so that new structures can be generated.
Discuss the fundamental concepts for all creative techniques in governance (10 Marks)
Fundamental concepts for all creative techniques are:
• The suspension of premature judgement and the lack of filtering of ideas.
• Use the intermediate impossible.
• Create analogies and metaphors, through symbols, etc., by finding similarities
between the situation, which we wish to understand and another situation, which we
already understand.
• Build imaginative and ideal situations (invent the ideal vision).
• Find ways to make the ideal vision happen.
• Relate things or ideas which were previously unrelated.
• Generate multiple solutions to a problem.

Critically examine the strategies used to stimulate and encourage creativity in governance.
(10 Marks)
Main points to increase or encourage creativity in governance are:
• to be happy, to have fun
• keep channels of communication open
• trust, failure accepted
• contacts with external sources of information
• independence, initiatives taken
 • support participatory decision-making and employees’ contribution
• experiment with new ideas
Explain the expected results of a creative governance process in Africa (10 Marks)
Some expected results of the creativity process are:
• innovation through new product and process ideas
• continuous improvement of products or services
• productivity increase
• efficiency
• rapidity
• flexibility
• quality of products or services
• high performance

Discuss factors considered to encourage the creative work climate in governance (10 Marks)
According to Higgins (1999) factors to encouraging the creative work climate are:
• A secure environment with minimal administrative interference.
• An organisational culture that makes it attractive and easy for people to discover and
solve problems.
• Rewards for employee performance and enhancement of intrinsic motivation.
• Managerial willingness to take risks for creativity and innovation, as well as an open
and flexible attitude on the part of management.
• Providing people with formal and informal training to enhance creativity.
Elucidate on brainstorming phases and their application in governance (10 Marks)
• Orientation
• Preparation
• Warm-up
• Production of ideas
• Incubation
• Syntheses
• Evaluation
Explain the stimulus to extend perspectives to approach a governance problem (10 Marks)
• List the elements that would bring on success.
• List the elements that we visualise as failure.
• Visualise success seen from the viewpoint of fifty years from now.
• Visualise success seen from the perspective of one hundred years ago.
• Look for impossible and desirable ideas.
• Create analogies with other things that have been successful.
• Imagine and write down ideas that are wild, illegal, crazy, etc.
• Insert the problem from its present scenario to a totally different scenario.
• Return from the fantasy scenario to the present scenario and try to associate the ideas
generated in the fantasy scenario, with ideas that might apply to the real problem.
 • Imagine what people we admire would say.
• Search for pairs of ideas that are apparently unconnected and that can be associated by
a third.
• Imagine that everything exists and all we have to do is find it.
• Change the level on which the problem is approached.

Discuss the application of various creative techniques for solving a governance problem
(10 Marks)
Brainstorming: This is one of the best known and most used in the business world group
based creativity process for problem solving. It is a method of getting a large number of ideas
from a group of people in a short time. It can be used for generating a large number of ideas
or solutions for well-defined strategic or operational problems, such as for engineering design
processes. It forms also a basic framework or constitutes the initial phase for the
implementation of many other groups based on creative techniques.
Story boarding: It is a creativity technique for strategic and scenario planning based on
brainstorming and used mainly by groups. It requires a leader, a secretary and takes place in a
group of 8-12 people. The leader arranges the ideas generated by brainstorming in a logical
order on a white board creating a story. This technique allows identify the interconnections of
ideas and how all the pieces fit together. It can be used to identify issues, problems, solve a
complex problem and determine ways to implement solutions.

Lotus Blossom: This technique can also be used in scenario planning and is very useful for
forecasting strategic scenarios. It is designed for groups and is used to provide a more in-
depth look at various solutions to problems. It begins with a central core idea surrounded by
eight empty boxes or circles. Using brainstorming, eight additional ideas (solutions or issues)
are written in these boxes. In the next step, each of these eight ideas becomes the core of
another set of eight surrounding empty boxes, which are filled in by new ideas using
brainstorming.
Checklists: This creative technique is used mainly for product improvement or modification.
It involves applying a series of words, verbs, adjectives or phrases contained in checklists or
tables to an existing product or service or its attributes. Osborn’s Checklist is the best known
and includes the verbs: put to other uses, adapt, modify, magnify, minify, substitute,
rearrange, reverse and combine.
Morphological Analysis: This method is another product improvement technique, permitting
the in-depth analysis of products or processes. It involves applying a set of words to an item
another set of words. Normally, one set of words is verbs and the other set are attributes of
the product. Another way is that one set of words would be components of the product
(breaking the product down into its parts) and the other set of words would be alternative
solutions. The method is to combine each word of one set with each word of the other set.
Mapping Process: The use of maps is particularly useful in strategic management thinking
in organisations, helping to organise discontinuities, contradictions or differences, and bring
pattern, order and sense to a confusing situation, acting as a spatial representation of a
perspective.
The Excursion Technique: Is a very useful technique for forcing a group to have new
thought patterns to formulate strategies. The process involves five steps (see Higgins 1996):
In the 1st step - the excursion - the consultant asks participants to take an imaginary
excursion to a physical location (a museum, a jungle, a city, another planet, etc.), which has
nothing to do with the real problem. After the excursion each participant writes down 8-10
images, which he/she saw during the journey (things, people, places or items) in the 1st of 3
columns.
In the 2nd step, the consultant asks participants to draw analogies or express relationships
between what they saw on the excursion and the problem as defined, and to write them in the
column 2 next to each of the items identified in the first column.
In the 3rd step, participants are asked to determine what solutions to their problems are
suggested by the analogies or the relationships in column 2, and write them in column 3
beside the items and analogies identified in the other columns.
In the 4th step, participants share their experiences from the excursion: what they saw, their
analogies and their solutions.
In the 5th step, as with brainstorming, participants may discuss on each other’s ideas.
Eventually the leader helps the group come to a common solution or a set of solutions to the
problem.
Computer-based creativity techniques: Computer-based supporting techniques to stimulate
the human creative process have an immediate and pragmatic aim, which is the
implementation of computational models (computer software) for generate and organise ideas
for creative work. They are used more frequently in research planning, product design,
knowledge acquisition, decision making, motivation, etc. We can distinguish groups of
computerised creativity techniques, such as AI models, Idea Processors systems and
visualisation and graphical systems.

Expound Guilford in Haefele, (1962) elements of creative thinking and its application in
governance. (10 Marks)
Guilford says that creative thinking has eight important elements (Haefele, 1962):
• Sensitivity to problems (needs, seeing the unconventional)
• Fluidity (multitude of thoughts and associations)
• Flexibility (getting rid of thinking laziness and adaptive set)
• Originality (not having a general impulse)
• Dominance (dominance on the situation and having divergent associations)
• Analysis (defining, recognition)
• Synthesis (closure ability)
• Redefining
Guilford’s thought can be simplified to four elements as below:
 • Flexibility: not sticking to certain solutions for a problem.
• Originality: creating thought different than the others’
• Efficiency: creating more than one solution suggestion to a problem.
• Elaboration: dealing with problems with a detailed manner.

Discuss the properties of a creative governance process as advanced by Lipman (2003)

(10 Marks)
Lipman (2003) evaluated the creativity process and below are the properties of this process;
• Originality: The product being a product that hasn’t been in the repertoire.
• Productivity: Creativity is a fertile pursuit. It creates a product.
• Imagination: Imagination lies at the base of creativity. Creative people create new
things with their imaginations.
• Independence: Dependence to something is the worst obstacle for creativity.
Creativity requires independence.
• Experimentation: Creative people generally test their solutions the way they found
them.
• Holism: Creativity generally means a whole, complete solution.
• Expression: Creativity especially shows itself in a person’s self-definition. This is
his/her individual nature.
• Self-transcendence: Creative people transcend themselves, pass beyond the present
situation
• Surprise: Creativity generally creates a weird product and causes surprise. Creativity
people love the nature; their products have people around them in awe.
• Generativity: Creativity brings forth and suggests multiple solutions. Creativity means
multiple solution ways.
• Maieuticity: Maieuticity, known as the Socrates’ method, means defining present
situation and finding new solutions. It requires a different look to present elements.
• Inventiveness: Inventiveness is the most accepted property of creativity. Creative
people find new ways, create a new art.
Explain the four dimensions of creativity applicable to governance studies. (10 Marks)
Dimensions of creativity can be linked with Bloom’s taxonomy. As you know the new
taxonomy of Bloom has creativity on top of cognitive area. Creativity here has four
dimensions. Those dimensions also show a levelled structure.
• Imitation: imitation is the first step of creativity. In this stage people and works done
are imitated. A good example can be seen on artistic creativity. A person first imitates
the art of famous artists. He tries to capture the fine techniques there. Creativity is
new for this person, but not for the society or history.
• Relocation: In this stage the person starts to use a known object, method or action
somewhere else. In a sense this stage is the redemption step from function that is one
of the obstacles of creativity. This type of creativity can be seen in children. Children
take an object and use it something else, thus having creative behavior.
 • Making connections: this stage is a more complex level of relocating. The person
connects two objects that are not related, far from each other. He makes a never-
before connection. This is the group which daily life considers as real creativity.
• Method development: In this stage the person has created a new method with
creativity and others start to imitate him with that method. This stage makes him a
master.
Discuss the eight properties of a creative governance system. (10 Marks)
Made useful with that, creativity has eight properties, four cognitive, four affective.
• Rationalism: Creating as much solutions as possible
• Flexibility: Thinking in different ways.
• Originality: Creating solutions that are different from others’
• Elaboration: Detailing.
Those four properties are cognitive and are set by Guilford. These are supported by affective
properties.
• Curiosity: Creative people are curious people.
• Complexity: They are intellectually complex. They handle situations in a different
and complex manner.
• Risk taking: They look for unconventional solutions and take risks. They take risks
by looking for the yet unknown.
• Imagination: They have strong imaginations (Haefele, 1962)

Discuss the obstacles to a creative governance processes in Africa (10 Marks)

Factors that inhibit creative thinking are seen as the obstacles of creativity and are shown in
five groups (Rıza, 1999):
• Emotional barriers: Shyness, fear befooling and being misunderstood, lack of
tolerance and over self-criticism.
• Cultural barriers: Examples of cultural barriers are not valuing imagination and
creativity seen as childish.
• Learned barriers: Obsessing on usefulness, possibility expectations, divine taboos are
learned barriers.
• Cognitive barriers: Conventional cognition traditions are on this group.
• Loaded program barriers: Education programs inhibit creativity.
Discuss the forms of thinking that support creative thinking in governance (10 Marks)
The methods of thinking that support creativity thinking, according to Lipman (2003), are as
below:
• Amplificative: It can be discussed in two dimensions as implicative thinking sampled
by deduction, amplicative thinking using analogy and metaphors. Amplicative
thinking passes beyond what has been given and enables our thinking to grow. As it
is, creativity thinking is amplificative.
 • Defiant: Defiant thinking is another method of thinking that supports creativity
thinking. Creativity thinkers generally defy (break) rules and criteria, which is
generally true.
• Maieutic: Lipman says that thinking is intellectual midwifery. Maieutic thinking is
extractive, eductive, seeking to elicit the best positive thinking possible from one’s
charges.
Differentiate between creative thinking and critical thinking in governance (10 Mark)
Creative thinking has to investigate the solutions given before it in order to be creative. As it
is, critical thinking comes before creative thinking. Also, the product that has resulted from
the creative thinking has to be evaluated with critical thinking.
That is the main property that separates creative thinking from imaginative thinking. Creative
thinking paves the way for creative thinking in defining the problem. It helps in “keeping its
feet on the ground” while evaluating the resulting product. In this manner, creative thinking
comes before critical thinking and then returns to it.
Differences between critical thinking and creative thinking (Fisher, 2004):
• Critical Creative
• Analytic Productive
• Convex Divergent
• Vertical Horizontal
• Possibility Probability
• Judgement Suspective judgement
• Hipothesis testing Hipothesis creating
• Objective Subjective
• Answer Any answer
• Left brain Right brain
• Close ended Open ended
• Linear Evocative (connective)
• Reason Inference (speculation)
• Logic Instinct
• Yes but Yes and

Using examples in governance, discuss the approaches to creativity based on psychological

paradigms (10 Marks)
Approaches to creativity may be classified in terms of psychological paradigms, such as
evolutionary, biological, cognitive, and differential.
The behavioral paradigm conceptualizes creativity in terms of novel associations and tries
to identify the behavioral correlates of novel learning processes. One example is the concept
of “insight,” which has a longstanding history in psychology and refers to spontaneously
synthesized learned associations. Behaviorists are especially interested in the effects of
experience on insight and how these benefit creative thinking. However, the notion of
creativity as a latent (not directly observable) variable is largely incompatible with the
behavioral approach to creativity.
The biological paradigm, on the other hand, looks at the physiological correlates of creative
thinking and how these processes may be manifested at the level of brain structure and neural
processes. A central issue here is the extent to which creativity can be mapped onto either
right or left hemispherical activity. Thus creative thinking would involve as much rational as
intuitive processes.
The clinical paradigm looks at the extent to which creativity is associated with abnormal
behavior, either as a cause or consequence of psychological disorders. A well-known idea
that emerged from this area is the “mad genius” hypothesis.
The cognitive paradigm (as you may have guessed!) emphasizes the role of cognitive
processes, such as attention and memory, in regard to creativity. For instance, Wallach (1970)
found that broader rather than focused attention is beneficial for creativity as it enables
individuals with a wider range of stimuli and memory traces to produce ideas.
The developmental approach attempts to identify changes in creativity throughout the
lifespan and how certain characteristics of the family (e.g., size, age, birth order) may affect
levels of creativity. It has, for instance, been shown that middle-born children tend to be more
rebellious than their siblings and are thus more likely to have creative personalities.
The educational paradigm looks at creativity in the context of formal education (e.g.,
primary school, secondary school, university) and attempts to assess how different teaching
modalities may influence students’ creativity. To the extent that educational methods may
partly determine the development of creativity, the identification of the causes of high and
low creativity would provide important information for policy and designing interventions.
The differential or psychometric paradigm represents the leading approach to the study of
creativity. Although the concept of creativity developed in the context of early intelligence
theories and preliminary attempts to predict academic performance, it soon expanded to the
field of personality traits and eventually became consolidated as an independent area of
individual differences.

Discuss the four main differential approaches to creativity and their application to governance
(10 Marks)
The person approach, which attempts to identify the major characteristics of creative
individuals, looking primarily at the personality traits and ability levels of creative people. As
such, it is comparable to the dispositional approach to personality (which focuses on the
individual rather than the situation or context), although it also deals with the relationship
between creativity and established ability constructs.
The process approach to creativity, on the other hand, aims at conceptualizing the cognitive
mechanisms underlying the process of creative thinking, for example, associative and
divergent thinking. Unlike the person approach, process approaches to creativity are not
aimed at distinguishing between creative and non-creative individuals but try to explain the
general process of creative thinking in all individuals alike. They are thus concerned with
actual creativity rather than creative individuals and draw heavily from cognitive psychology.
In fact, the process approach to creativity is best represented by the collaborative effort
between cognitive and differential psychologists.
The product approach to creativity studies the characteristics of creative outcomes or
products, such as art works (e.g., paintings, designs, sculptures) and scientific publications
(e.g., theories, experiments, discoveries). The product approach is closely related to the study
of aesthetics, which is a classic area of philosophy. Accordingly, it is largely concerned with
productivity and achievement and focuses on individuals’ creations rather than their
personalities or the processes facilitating creative production (Simonton, 2004).
Finally, the press approach to creativity looks at the relationship between individuals as
creators and their environments. It therefore deals with the contextual determinants of
creativity, resembling the situational rather than dispositional.

Discuss various theories of creativity applicable in governance. (20 Marks)

1. Developmental theories:
Primary assertion: Creativity develops over time (from potential to achievement);
mediated by an interaction of person and environment.
Key concepts
• Place and family structures;
• Role of play;
• Support during transitions;
• Longitudinal process
• Multivariate influences
2. Psychometric theories:
Primary assertion: Creativity can be measured reliability and validly;
differentiating it from related constructs (IQ) and highlighting its domain-specific
nature.
Key concepts:
• Reliable and valid
• measurement
• Discriminant validity
• Thresholds
• Domain specificity
3. Economic theories
Primary assertion: Creative ideation and behavior is influenced by “market forces”
and cost-benefit analyses.
Key concepts:
• Influence of macro-level factors
• Psychoeconomic perspective
• Markets of creativity
• Investment decisions
4. Stage & Componential Process theories
Primary assertion: Creative expression proceeds through a series of stages or
 components; the process can have linear and recursive elements.
Key concepts:
• Preparation stages
• Incubation and insight
• Verification and evaluation
• Component mechanisms
5. Cognitive theories
Primary assertion: Ideational thought processes are foundational to creative
persons and accomplishments.
Key concepts
• Remote association
• Divergent/convergent thinking
• Conceptual combination, expansion
• Metaphorical thinking, imagery
• Metacognitive processes
6. Problem Solving & Expertise-Based
Primary assertion: Creative solutions to ill-defined problems result from a rational
process, which relies on general cognitive processes and domain expertise.
Key concepts
• Ill-defined problems
• Cognitive, computational approach
• Expertise-based approaches
• Problem representation & heuristics
7. Problem Finding
Primary assertion: Creative people proactively engage in a subjective and
exploratory process of identifying problems to be solved.
Key concepts:
• Subjective creative processes
• Exploratory behaviors
• On-line discovery
8. Evolutionary (Darwinian)
Primary assertion: Eminent creativity results from the evolutionary-like processes
of blind generation and selective retention.
Key concepts
• Chance-configuration
• Blind generation of ideas
• Selective retention of ideas
• Equal-odds rule
• Social judgment and chance
9. Typological theories
Primary assertion: Creators vary along key individual differences, which are related to
both macro- and micro-level factors and can be classified via typologies.
Key concepts:
• Individual differences
• Categories of creators
 • Seekers versus finders
• Integrate multiple levels of analysis
10. Systems theories
Primary assertion: Creativity results from a complex system of interacting and
interrelated factors.
• Evolving systems
• Network of enterprises
• Domain and field
• Gatekeepers
• Collaborative Creativity
• Chaos and Complexity

Discuss the characteristics of the creative person as given by McFadzean (2000) (10 Marks)
McFadzean (2000:15) manages to conclude and summarise the traits of the creative person as
follows:
• A desire to achieve a goal or winning attitude
• A high level of motivation, dedication and commitment
• A high level of self-confidence, not risk aversive and accepting of failure
• The ability to link different (unrelated) elements or entities
• The assimilation of negativities regarding failed projects or attempts
• An ability to shift existing paradigms and assess different perspectives
• Problem and opportunity conceptualisation in a different or new frame of mind
• A “single minded” vision or road map
• A working style that induces hard work and relaxation in order to enhance incubation
• The ability to determine whether individual or group creativity should take place.
Explain the concept of creativity and the four main steps in creativity process development
suggested by Graham Wallas in 1926.
(10 Marks)
Graham Wallas in 1926 suggested a creativity process development consisted of four steps
namely:
• Preparation (problem assessment)
• Incubation (conscious and unconscious mental dynamic)
• Illumination (new idea conception)
• Verification (evaluation of idea/s).
Discuss factors in the social environment that influence negatively creative behaviour of an
individual. (10 Marks)
The social environment
 • The social environment entails all the variables affecting the human being, whether
individually or in group format on a social or societal level. The following factors in
this environment can influence creative behaviour negatively:
o A lack of understanding and support for new ideas in communities, among
peers and parents.
o Many families have an autocratic decision-making structure, and therefore do
not allow children to think independently.
o Risk taking is not allowed.
o Culture and certain customs or beliefs within a sub-culture might form barriers
to creative behaviour (e.g. women in particular African cultural structures are
not allowed to own or run entrepreneurial ventures. Their sole purpose is to
raise children.)
Discuss the cultural barriers to creativity development process. (10 Marks)
The following barriers are reckoned to be generic cultural barriers:
• Individuals have to go to school, after that study at a university or college, then find a
job with a governmental institution (cultural mindset). Entrepreneurial endeavour is
not a feature of such a cultural group.
• The unknown is unsafe and therefore risk averseness is the rule. Although calculated,
entrepreneurship entails a certain level of risk-taking.
• An expectation is created in certain cultures, which prescribes that one has to be
practical and think economically before your ideas can be generated.
• To ask a question, or to question an issue, is impertinent and unacceptable.
• Stereotyping implies making assumptions about certain issues without proper
knowledge of the background or particulars of the matter, with specific reference to
cultural characteristics.
• The policy of a company is to follow strict orders and procedures, and also stay in line
with the organisational structure.
Discuss qualities of an innovative person in a governance process. (10 Marks)
• Intellectual ability: This is the ability to see problems in a new way, and the ability to
cross the borders of conventional thought; the ability to distinguish between ideas that
are worthwhile to investigate and those that aren’t; the ability to influence and
persuade other individuals. It includes obvious and explicit knowledge of the area of
interest, problems, products and services. There is a preference for new thoughts
regarding own choices to be made.
• Personality traits: A willingness to overcome obstacles; to take calculated and
worthwhile risks; to accept and handle ambiguities and chaos and self-efficiency are
regarded as positive personality traits. All the above qualities are largely motivated
and strengthened by intrinsic task motivation, which is part of a successful
entrepreneur. The fact remains that these variables can be taught as was pointed out
by various authors and the omission of this aspect definitely won’t set up true
entrepreneurial achievement.

Discuss the approaches involved in creative thinking skills (10 Marks)

 • Creative thinking skills involve such approaches as:
• Engaging in reflection.
• Looking for many possible answers rather than one.
• Allowing yourself to make wild and crazy suggestions as well as those that seem
sensible.
• Not judging ideas early in the process - treat all ideas as if they may contain the seeds
of something potentially useful.
• Allowing yourself to doodle, daydream or play with a theory or suggestion.
• Being aware that these approaches necessarily involve making lots of suggestions that
are unworkable and may sound silly.
• Making mistakes.
• Learning from what has not worked as well as what did.
Discuss the techniques involved in thinking creatively (10 Marks)
Some techniques you can begin with are listed hereunder.
• Brainstorm ideas on one topic onto a large piece of paper: don't edit these. Just write
them down as soon as they come into your head.
• Allow yourself to play with an idea while you go for a walk or engage in other
activities
• Draw or paint a theory on paper.
• Ask the same question at least twenty times and give a different answer each time.
• Combine some of the features of two different objects or ideas to see if you can create
several more.
• Change your routine. Do things a different way. Walk a different route to college.
• Let your mind be influenced by new stimuli such as music you do not usually listen
to.
• Be open to ideas when they are still new: look for ways of making things work and
pushing the idea to its limits.
• Cultivate creative serendipity.
• Ask questions such as 'what if….?' Or 'supposing….?'.
• Keep an ideas book. Inspiration can strike at any time! Ideas can also slip away very
easily. If you keep a small notebook to hand you can jot down your ideas straight
away and return to them later. Alternatively, you could use the voice recorder on your
mobile phone, or send yourself a text message! For example, you may think of a
really good idea for an assignment/project while you are listening to a lecture. You
should record it as soon as you can after the lecture: otherwise, you could forget it
entirely.
Discuss the characteristics of critical and passive non-critical thinkers and how they view the
world of governance. (10 Marks)
Critical thinkers display the following characteristics: -
• They are by nature skeptical. They approach texts with the same skepticism and
suspicion as they approach spoken remarks.
• They are active, not passive. They ask questions and analyse. They consciously apply
tactics and strategies to uncover meaning or assure their understanding.
 • They do not take an egotistical view of the world. They are open to new ideas and
perspectives. They are willing to challenge their beliefs and investigate competing
evidence.
By contrast, passive, non-critical thinkers take a simplistic view of the world.
• They see things in black and white, as either-or, rather than recognising a variety of
possible understandings.
• They see questions as yes-or-no with no subtleties.
• They fail to see linkages and complexities.
• They fail to recognise related elements.
Discuss strategies applicable in critical thinking in governance issues (10 Marks)
• Reflection; engage in the reflective process.
• Rationality; rely on reason rather than emotion, require evidence, ignore no known
evidence, and follow evidence where it leads; be concerned more with finding the best
explanation than being right; and analyse apparent confusion and ask questions.
• Self-awareness; weigh the influences of motives and bias; and recognise our own
assumptions, prejudices, biases, or point of view.
• Honesty; to think critically we must recognise emotional impulses, selfish motives,
disreputable purposes, or other modes of self-deception.
• Open-mindedness; evaluate all reasonable inferences; consider a variety of possible
viewpoints or perspectives; remain open to alternative interpretations; accept a new
explanation, model, or paradigm because it explains the evidence better, is simpler, or
has fewer inconsistencies or covers more data; accept new priorities in response to a
re-evaluation of the evidence or reassessment of our real interests; and do not reject
unpopular views out of hand.
• Discipline; be precise, meticulous, comprehensive, and exhaustive; engage in active
listening and reading practices; resist manipulation and irrational appeals, and avoid
snap judgments.
• Judgment; recognise the relevance and/or merit of alternative assumptions and
perspectives; recognise the extent and weight of evidence.

Critically examine the use of the six thinking hats in governance problem solving (10 Marks)
Design options can generate much discussion during the evaluation process. This needs to be
controlled if we are to make good use of our time. It is easy to take sides, to defend our own
ideas and to attack what we may see as opposing ideas. This may not be constructive.
An approach that helps to avoid confrontation and which channels our critical analysis is the
‘Six Thinking Hats’ approach (Dr Edward de Bono). Using this technique, a group can
evaluate an idea and can argue both the pros and cons whilst remaining as objective as
possible.
A chairperson should formally facilitate the process. An individual may ‘wear’ a hat to
produce a comment without any possible attached stigma - ‘wearing the black hat for a
moment I don’t think that this will work…’. The person who is always critical without being
constructive has to become constructive (or lose face) when asked by the chair - ‘now let us
wear the yellow hat and see what good things may result from this idea’.
The hats…
i. White hat - neutral - (think of white paper)
Information - What do we know? What information do we want? What do we need?
ii. Red hat - fire, warmth
Feelings, emotion, intuition, hunches
iii. Black hat - caution
Legality, judgement, morality
iv. Yellow hat - sunshine
Positive, optimism, benefits
v. Green hat - growth
New ideas, new slants, options, opportunities
vi. Blue hat - sky
Overview, control of the process, agenda, next step, action plans, conclusions
Explain the characteristics of good governance ideas (10 Marks)
• solve, or partially solve, more than one identified problem
• can be implemented quickly. Your client will often be attracted to a partial solution
that relieves the problem, while you continue to work on the complete solution
• can be implemented independently. In governance we often put forward complex
solutions that depend upon the successful implementation of other systems. When a
problem occurs with one system there is often a domino effect of delays
• mesh well with overall governance strategies. These will always find favour with
leadership and management.
• can be implemented step-by-step, incremental implementation. Implement a basic
solution, then implement more sophistication. In this way you offer a faster solution
delivery - albeit not a complete solution – at first. Management may well be willing to
wait for the full solution, especially if the business concepts are new.
Discuss the ideal process of brainstorming on any governance issue (10 Marks)
• Organise the team, materials and scribe
• Appoint a chairperson
• State the problems we are trying to solve
• Restate the problem a number of times:
- How to reduce time to...?
- How to speed up ...
• Inhibit the left brain
• Have a warm up session e.g.
Other uses for:
- A gumboot
- A torch
- A paper clip
 • Brainstorm the restated problems and record the ideas
• When the session slows down, invite the ‘wildest idea’
• At the end of the session, classify all ideas then evaluate
• do not eliminate ideas too quickly
• Request assistance from management on matters of policy, don’t speculate
To be successful, brainstorming sessions need a good chairperson. It is vital that no
discussions are allowed on any idea during the session, the idea is just recorded. The
chairperson’s role is to keep the ideas coming, often fast and furious, with people striking
sparks off each other.