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Creativity from Constraint? How Political Correctness Influences Creativity in Mixed-Sex Work Groups

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dc.contributor.authorGoncalo, Jack
dc.contributor.authorChatman, Jennifer A.
dc.contributor.authorDuguid, Michelle M.
dc.contributor.authorKennedy, Jessica A.
dc.date.accessioned2020-11-17T17:19:13Z
dc.date.available2020-11-17T17:19:13Z
dc.date.issued2014-08-18
dc.description.abstractMost group creativity research is premised on the assumption that creativity is unleashed by removing normative constraints. As work organizations become increasingly diverse in terms of gender, however, this assumption needs to be reconsidered since mixed-sex interactions carry a high risk of offense. Departing from the assumption that normative constraints necessarily stifle creativity, we develop a theoretical perspective in which creativity in mixed-sex groups is enhanced by imposing a norm to be politically correct (PC)—a norm that sets clear expectations for how men and women should interact with one another. We present evidence from two group experiments showing that the PC norm promotes rather than suppresses members’ free expression of ideas by reducing the uncertainty they experience in mixed-sex work groups. These results highlight a paradoxical consequence of the PC norm: A term that has been used to undermine expectations to censor offensive language as a threat to free speech actually provides a normative foundation upon which demographically heterogeneous work groups can freely exchange creative ideas. We discuss the implications of our findings for managing creativity in diverse groups and under conditions of uncertainty, and the counterintuitive role that normative constraints play in that process.
dc.description.legacydownloadsGoncalo40_Creativity_from_constraint.pdf: 8437 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020.
dc.identifier.other6031862
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1813/75434
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.rightsRequired Publisher Statement: Copyright by Cornell University. Final paper to be published as Goncalo, J. A., Chatman, J. A., Duguid, M. M., & Kennedy, J. A. (forthcoming). Creativity from constraint? How political correctness influences creativity in mixed-sex work groups. Administrative Science Quarterly.
dc.subjectcreativity
dc.subjectcreativity in work groups
dc.subjectuncertainty
dc.subjectgroup gender composition
dc.subjectpolitical correctness norm
dc.titleCreativity from Constraint? How Political Correctness Influences Creativity in Mixed-Sex Work Groups
dc.typearticle
local.authorAffiliationGoncalo, Jack: jag97@cornell.edu Cornell University
local.authorAffiliationChatman, Jennifer A.: University of California - Berkeley
local.authorAffiliationDuguid, Michelle M.: Washington University in St Louis
local.authorAffiliationKennedy, Jessica A.: Vanderbilt University

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