Apparently there is new research that supports the idea that increased creativity also increases your likelihood of dishonesty. The research is based on an article published in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology by Francisco Gino at Harvard University and Dan Ariely at Duke University.
To read the article I am basing today's post from--you can check it out here it is written by Suzanne Labarre.
My favorite two quotes from the article:
“Not only do naturally creative people cheat more than uncreative people, subjects cajoled into thinking outside of the box become cheaters, too. This suggests that the creative process isn’t just tied to dishonest behavior; it actually enables it.”
“Our creativity lets us come up with more reasons for why behaving unethical is not morally problematic.”
Of course the article is not stating that everyone who is creative is dishonest--or that only creative occupations lead to dishonest behavior. Labarre recommends that businesses should make sure to focus on ethics and morality within the workforce.
In my school the students are divided into two smaller learning communities the Professional Academy and the Design Academy. I teach the "creatives" within the Design academy and I have often been frustrated by the apparent lack of ethics with my students in regards to their homework. They always seem surprised when I give them lectures on ethics and morality--now I can see that these lectures might be essential with students who are naturally creative. They will need to learn to use their creative forces for good and not evil.