Paper 48

From Possibility Studies Network

One is greater than two but less than three: Collaboration in creative problem-solving

Thomas Ormerod, University of Sussex


Abstract

In principle, collaboration should be a positive force for creativity, hence the proverb “two heads are better than one”. Yet there is evidence from other cognitive activities, such as remembering, that sometimes collaboration can have inhibitory rather than facilitative effects. Here, two studies are reported that examine the effects of group size on collaborative problem-solving in creative domains. In the first study, the generation of explanatory hypotheses in a criminal investigative context was found to be a function of group size, with individuals generating more alternative hypotheses that dyads, but with triads generating more than individuals. This finding was replicated in a study of insight problem-solving. Whilst effects of collaborative inhibition in remembering are usually explained as a cognitive effect of retrieval cue blocking, in these studies the source of inhibition in dyads seems more likely to be a function of the differing social roles played by group members.


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