Definition of Critical Realism
Critical realism came into existence as German philosophers attempted to deal with idealist philosophy that was common towards the end of the 18th century. It became popular among proponents of the American philosophy movement in 1916. The intention of introducing critical realism was to combine idealism with the perception that human beings could know the true nature of their world through new realism, which argued that the external world was not different from the way it appeared. Critical realism emerged in 1966, after Ian Barbour, a philosopher discussed theological and scientific realism (Clark, 2013).
Critical realism has several major themes. The first one is that it acknowledges the presence of a reality that is not influenced by human perception and conception. The mechanisms that explain the reality affect what human beings observe. Naturally, the underlying mechanism is the natural laws whose effects are visible. Critical realism is also applicable in social contexts although it is difficult to make predictions. The involvement of human beings in the creation of social rules leads to constant changes. Critical realism provides a description of past or current events but does not create certainty about the future (Critical Realism, 2013).
Critical realism is criticized since it is not clear whether experimental results can provide theories in a natural setting. Mere observation of particular results does not confirm that theories advanced in an attempt to explain what leads to the results are empirically accurate (Response to Critical Realism in Defense of Integral Theory, 2012).
How to Measure Creativity
There are different indicators that can be used to measure the creativity of an individual. The first indicator is inquisitiveness. An inquisitive person is a person who questions, investigates, explores, and challenges assumptions. Such a person does not accept things as they are told to him/her but goes ahead to look for the truth. The second indicator of a creative person is persistence (Mary, 2012). This refers to the ability to withstand difficult situations, tolerate uncertainty, and dare to do things that other people shy away from. A persistent person is not discouraged by small things but rather uses the experience to move on.
The third indicator of a creative person is the imaginativeness. An imaginative person explores different possibilities, makes links, and uses intuition to try to understand complicated matters. The fourth indicator that can be used to measure creativity is the ability of an individual to collaborate with others. Collaboration involves making a product public, accepting feedback, and showing cooperating with different people (Nilsson, 2012).
Threats to Team Creativity
Team creativity is very important in any organization because it enhances business growth. However, it is threatened by the following factors. The first threat to team creativity is conformity. This occurs when members in a certain group have a feeling that other individuals in the same group might criticize their suggestions. It occurs despite the fact there are clear instructions that prevent such occurrences. The second threat to team creativity is production blocking.
This interferes with team productivity in two major ways (James, 2003). The first way is that it disrupts the manner in which the idea generation is organized due to long delays. The second way through which production blocking interferes with team creativity is by reducing the freedom of generating ideas due to unpredictable delays. The third threat to creativity is performance matching. This occurs when team members match or equate their performance with the performance of an individual who is the least productive (Promoting Creativity, 2009).
References
Clark, A. (2013). Critical Realism. Web.
Critical Realism. (2013). Web.
Mary, R. (2012). Creativity and Innovation in the Workplace. Web.
Nilsson, P. (2012). Four Ways to Measure Creativity. Web.
Promoting Creativity. (2009). Web.
Response to Critical Realism in Defense of Integral Theory. (2012). Web.