Find your inspiration: Exploring different levels of abstraction in textual stimuli

The selection of inspirational sources is a crucial step while designing, which potentially can enhance creativity. However, empirical investigations have demonstrated a dual-effect that some stimuli might have during idea generation. Therefore, it is valid to discuss whether designers are disregarding other stimuli, such as textual representations. To test the impact of different textual stimuli during ideation phases, we exposed novice designers to three types of written stimuli, with different abstraction levels. The results demonstrate that participants exposed to distant textual stimuli tended to generate a higher number of more flexible and original ideas. The most ‘appropriate’ stimuli seem to be the ones that enabled the establishment of enough association links with the problem, yet keeping a sufficient level of abstraction for the exploration of creative ideas. Looking into alternative stimuli, with different levels of granularity, can potentially raise designers’ awareness about the usefulness of other valuable inspirational source