Person-Environment Fit and Creativity: The Moderating Role of Collectivism

以305名大学生为研究对象,检验创造性氛围的供给.期望匹配、个人创造性能力的要求-能力匹配与个人创造性的关系,考察集体主义价值观对这种关系的影响.结果显示供给-期望匹配中实际创造性氛围、要求-能力匹配中的实际创造性能力对个人创造性有显著作用.对于高集体主义价值观的个人,环境因素(实际创造性氛围和要求创造性能力)对他们创造性影响作用更为显著,展现出集体主义价值观对创造性的间接积极作用.Prior studies have demonstrated the positive effects of congruent personal and environmental characteristics on creativity. None of them, however, has explicitly and systematically tested the formal theory of person-environment fit for predicting creativity in the context of collectivism. This study examined the effects of two versions of person-environment fit (supplies-values and demands-abilities fit) on creativity in China, taking into account the moderating role of collectivism.Data were collected from 305 undergraduate students among 25 classes in a university of China. With the supports of their supervisors, students completed the questionnaire regarding desired climate for creativity, current climate for creativity, required creativity abilities, actual creative abilities, collectivism, and individual creativity. All questionnaires were returned back to authors directly. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was employed to analyze data.The results showed that creativity was significantly influenced only by current climate for creativity (supplies)and actual creative abilities (abilities). Collectivism moderated the effects of person-environment fit on creativity: creativity by individuals with high collectivism was almost exclusively predicted by environmental characteristics (current creative climate and required creative abilities), whereas creativity by individuals with low collectivism was influenced by optimal two versions fit between person and environment.Most western scholars think that collectivism is an impediment for creativity because collectivists tend to maintain conformity in group and then hinder the generation of unique and novel ideas. However, the present study clearly indicates that collectivism may have a positive effect on creativity under certain situations, that is,individuals with high collectivism will show higher creative performance when organizational supports and demands for creativity are presented. This implicates that managers should pay more attention to environmental characteristics for collectivistic employees in order to enhance their creativity.中文核心期刊要目总览(PKU)中国科技核心期刊(ISTIC)中国科学引文数据库(CSCD)中国社会科学引文索引(CSSCI)010980-9884