重新审视广告创意及广告文案外文文献

REEXAMININGADVERTISINGCREATIVITY:

AQUALITATIVEEXAMINATIONOFCOPYWRITERS'PERCEPTIONSOFCREATIVITYINADVERTISING

AThesis

presentedto

theFacultyoftheGraduateSchoolat

theUniversityofMissouri-Columbia

InPartialFulfillment

oftheRequirementsfortheDegree

MasterofArts

byBENJAMINOWENS

Dr.MargaretDuffy,ThesisSupervisor

DECEMBER2014

Theundersigned,appointedbythedeanoftheGraduateSchool,haveexamined

thethesisentitled

REEXAMININGADVERTISING

CREATIVITY:

AQUALITATIVEEXAMINATIONOFCOPYWRITERS'PERCEPTIONSOFCREATIVITYINADVERTISING

presentedbyBenjaminOwens,

acandidateforthedegreeofMasteroftheArts

andherebycertifythat,intheiropinion,itisworthyofacceptance.

ProfessorMargaretDuffy

ProfessorKeithGreenwood

ProfessorMitchellMcKinney

ProfessorMarkSwanson

DEDICATION

Thankstomyfiancee,Caroline,forputtingupwithmy"philosophizing"and

occasionallyesotericbehavior,andforsupportingmewhileIfollowedmyprofessional

andeducationalpassions.

Thankstomymomanddad,whohavepushedmesinceIwasinelementary

schoolrewritingspellingwordsmorethananyoneelse,whohavehelpedfundandinspiremyeducation,andtowhomI'vealwayskindofsortoftoldthewholetruthregardingmy

thesisprogress.

Thankstomyfriends,specificallythosethattookthetimetoeditmypapers,

formatmymargins,ortellmemyideaswereutterhorseshit.

Thankstomyadvisor,MargaretDuffy,withoutwhomIneverwouldhavebeen

abletodescribewhatIwantedtoresearch.

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I'dliketothankthecopywriterswhotookthetimetorantandraveabouttheir

favoritesubjectsformewhileItooknotesonmyfutureprofessionalpeers.Withoutyour

helpandexperience,thisthesiswouldnothavebeenpossible.Ihopethatyoufindthe

resultsinterestingenoughtosharewithatleastoneadvertisingcynic.I'dalsoliketo

taketheopportunitytosaythatI'mactuallymorefriendlyandtalkativethanIwas

duringtheinterviews,butI'mreallybadaboutinjectingmyopinionsintothe

conversation,andthiswassupposedtobeaboutyourthoughts.Sothankyouforsharing

andIhopethisprovidessomefodderfordiscussionsatthelocalwateringhole.

Thankyoutotheoriginalresearchers,Dr.Ried,Dr.King,andDr.DeLorme,

withoutwhomtherewouldbenobasisforcomparativestudies,norinspirationfor

aspiringcopywritersingraduateschool.

Thanksalsototheentirejournalismfaculty,withoutwhomI'dnevereven

consideredgraduatestudies,norresearch.

ThankstoStrategicResearchforbeingat8:00am,makingthegraduatelearning

curvemuchmoreinteresting.

ThankstoRiskAstleyforassuringmehewouldnevergivemeup.

iii

TABLEOFCONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT v

Chapter

1.INTRODUCTION

1

2.LITERATUREREVIEW

3

3.QUESTIONS

14

4.METHODS

15

5.ANALYSIS

20

PersonFactors

ProcessFactors

PlaceFactors

6.CONCLUSION…………45

PrimaryFindings

Future

REFERENCES…………………0

APPENDIX

A.RECRUITMENTLETTER

53

B.IRBAPPROVAL

54

C.ANONYMIZEDINTERVIEWEEMONIKERS

55

D.INTERVIEWQUESTIONBANK

56

iv

REEXAMININGADVERTISINGCREATIVITY:

AQUALITATIVEEXAMINATIONOFCOPYWRITERS'PERCEPTIONSOFCREATIVITYINADVERTISING

BenjaminOwens

Dr.MargaretDuffy,ThesisSupervisor

ABSTRACT

Creativityisanintangibleconceptthatisinaperceivedconstantstateof

change,astatethatnecessitatestheoccasionalreexaminationofpreviousfindingsinan

efforttofurtherunderstandtherolesandperceptionsheldbyadvertisingpractitioners.

Thisqualitativestudyoffersinsightsandexpandsonpreviousquantitativestudiesof

agencycreatives'viewsonadvertisingcreativity(Reid,King,&DeLorme,1998).

Throughtensemi-structuredinterviewsofsenioragencycopywriters,theauthor

comparedpastandpresentperceptionsofcreativityinadvertising.Thestudy'sfindings

helptoclarifywhatfactorsintosuchperceptionsandwhatimpacttechnological

advancementshavehaduponsaidperceivedlevelsofcreativity.Thestudyfoundthat

copywritersdonotunanimouslyagreethatcreativityhasincreased,thoughamajority

believesithasremainedconstantorslightlyincreased.Copywritersdoperceivecreativity

tohavechangedsincetheyenteredtheprofession,andtheyassertthatchangesin

approach,businessmodels,andtechnologicaladvancementsaretheprimaryfactors

contributingtochange.Thisstudyprovidespracticalandtheoreticalvalueby

contributingtorole-basedmodelsofadvertisingandbyinformingcurrentcopywritersof

theopinionsoftheirpeers.

V

EPIGRAPH

"You'reinthedesert,thedesertisadvertising.Andyouhavealittleplotoflandandacowwalksanddiesinit...Afewpeoplecouldliveoffthatcow

andyoucoulddevelopthecowandyoucouldbuildabrandor

whatever...[nowthey]throwasmallboneinfrontofthosedogs,justapieceofmeat,andtheygonuts,they'llkilleachotherforthatlittlebit.Andthat's

whatyoukindofsee,agencieswillingtodomoreandmoretokeepa

client...whichmeansmoreandmorestressjustputonthecreativesmaking

themlessandlesscreative."

—Interview#9

1

Introduction

Advertisingpractitionershaveneverunanimouslyagreeduponthemostimportant

aspectoftheirindustry,butthesignificantamountofresearchintoadvertisers'creative

processessuggeststhatcreativityis,attheveryleast,oneofthemostimportantfacetsofadvertisingasawhole(Sasser&Koslow,2008;Sasser&Koslow,2012).Thisisfurtherclarifiedintheoft-citedsayingofJefRichards,"Creativewithoutstrategyiscalled'art.'

Creativewithstrategyiscalled'advertising'(MSUAdvertisingAssociation,n.d.).A

well-roundedunderstandingofcreativityinadvertisingcanproveusefulin

accomplishingagencyobjectives.Itisalsoimportanttonotetherangeofperceptionsof

creativity'sroleswithinanagency(Hirschman,1989).

Inexaminingperceptionsofcreativityinadvertising,ithasbeenproposedthata

morefocused,qualitativetakeonexistingdatafromtop-levelagencycreativeswould

helptofurtherexplainchangingtrendsinindustry-basedperceptionsofadvertising

creativity(Reid,King&Delorme,1998).Assuggestedbytheseresearchers,advertising

researchcanbebrokendownintofivecategories:creativedecisionprocessstudies

(Hirschman,1989;Kover,1995;Johar,Holbrook,&Stern,2001),studiesof

practitioners'individualcharacteristics(Auer,1976;Reid&Rotfeld,1976;West,1993;

Young,2000;Hackley&Kover,2007),studiesonorganizationalinfluences(Kover&

Goldberg,1995;Kilgour&Koslow,2009;Reid&Karambayya,2009;Oliver&Ashley,

2012;Sasser&Koslow,2012),advertisingeducationstudies(McGann,1986),and

studiesontrendsintheindustry(Reid,King,&DeLorme,1998;White&Smith,2001;

Koslow,Sasser,&Riordan,2003;Sasser&Koslow,2008;Sasser&Koslow,2012).

2

Thesecategoriesarereinforcedbythe3PModelofCreativity(Sasser&Koslow,2008),

whichdesignatesperson,place,andprocessasappropriateresearchcategories.

Thepresentstudyissituatedinthefifthcategoryproposedbytheresearchersas

itsfocusisontrendsinperceptionsofcreativitybythoseincreativejobs.Thegoalofthis

studywastoexaminethequestionofwhetheragencycreativesbelievecreativityin

advertisingisincreasing,unchanged,ordecreasing(Reid,King&DeLorme,1998).This

studyissignificantbecauseitnotonlyprovidesfurtherevidenceoftheimportanceof

role-basedperceptions,butalsoinformscopywritersasawholethatcommonlyheld

beliefssurroundingtheadvertisingindustryinthepastarenotasunanimousastheyonce

were.Thisstudy'squalitativeexaminationdigsdeeperintothesuggestionsofprevious

quantitativeresults,allowingforabetterunderstandingofthefactorsandreasonsthatare

perceivedtohaveaffectedsuchtrendsincreativity.

3

LiteratureReview

TheoreticalFramework

ThefoundationforthisreviewisrootedinthetheoreticalframeworksofSasser&

Koslow's3PModelofCreativity(Sasser&Koslow,2008;Sasser&Koslow,2012).

Usingthismodeltoorganizeexistingresearchoncreativityinadvertisingfacilitates

discussionandunderstandingofwhathasbeenfoundbycategorizingresearchaccording

toitsprimaryinvestigation(Sasser&Koslow,2008).

Theliteratureincludedinthisreviewwillbeorganizedintosectionsderivedfrom

Reid,King,andDeLorme's(1998)categories:creativedecisionprocessstudies,

individualcharacteristics,organizationalinfluences,advertisingeducation,andindustry

trends.Thereisconsiderableoverlapofthefirstthreecategorieswiththoseofthe3P

Model,process,person,andplace(Sasser&Koslow,2008).Combiningthesetwo

organizationalsystemsresultsinatotaloffourcategoriesasfollows:Person,Place,

ProcessandTrends.Usingthesecategories,eachaspectofadvertisingcreativityresearchcanbeunderstoodwithinthecontextofrelevantliterature.Theauthorhaseliminatedthe

categoryofadvertisingeducationfromthisreview,asitisnotinlinewiththisstudy's

primaryfocusonadvertisingpractitioners.

Forthepresentstudy,creativityisdefinedbasedonresearchbyReid,King,&

DeLorme,(1998,p.3):“originalandimaginativethoughtdesignedtoproducegoal-

directedandproblem-solvingadvertisementsandcommercials."Theoriginalstudyputthisdefinitionthroughexhaustivescreeningandpre-testprocessesbeforetheresearchers

feltcomfortableusingit.Thisdefinitionwillserveasthepresentstudy'sbasisfor

4

comparison(Reid,King,&DeLorme,1998).CreativeProfessionals,referredtohereafterascreativesunlessotherwiseindicated,canbedefinedasprofessionalswithvarioustitlesincludingCopywriter,ArtDirector,GraphicDesignerand/orCreativeDirector.Account-SideProfessionals,alsoreferredtoasaccountexecutives,includethosein"management,

media[and]strategy"positions(Sasser&Koslow,2003).

Creativityinadvertising

Asmentionedabove,advertisingcreativityresearchmaybeeffectively

categorizedusingperson,processand/orplace(Sasser&Koslow,2012).Inaddition,

Reid,King&DeLorme'strend-monitoringcategoryseparatesindustrytrendresearch

fromtheformerthreecategories.Whilesomestudiescouldbeincludedwithinmorethanonecategory,Ihavenarrowedthefocusofthereviewtohighlightthemostprominentofthecategorieswithineachofthearticlesreviewed.Whiletheproposedresearchdoesnot

takeintoaccountalloftheexistinginformationoncreativityinadvertising,itis

imperativetoapproachastudyofperceptionwithasolidfoundationandunderstandingofwhathasalreadybeenresearched.ThisliteratureisthebasisforRQ1andRQ2:Docopywritersperceiveanincreaseincreativityinadvertisingandwhatfactorscontribute

tothisperceivedchange?

PersonStudies

PersonStudiesisthefirstofthefourcategoriesandincludespractitionersin

account-andcreative-sideroles(Sasser&Koslow,2008).Researchershavespenta

considerableamountoftimestudyingthiselementofthecreativeprocess(Auer,1976;

West,1993;Young,2000;Koslow,Sasser,Riordan,2003;Hackley&Kover,2007;

Sasser&Koslow,2012).

5

OneofthefirststudiescitedbySasserandKoslow(2012)andReid,Kingand

DeLorme(1998)isthatofAuer(1976)whoexaminedhowcreativestudentsdifferfromtheirpeerswithregardtoempathy.Interpersonalempathyandgeneralizedempathywerethemainfocusinthispilotstudy.Thisexperimentwasthenreplicatedusingpractitioners

asthesubjects.Thestudyconsistedof515studentparticipantsfromthreeuniversities.

Eachgroupofcreativestudentswasfoundtobemoreempatheticthanagency

counterpartswithregardtogeneralizedothers,butlessempathetictointerpersonal

situations(Auer,1976).

Inthecategoryofindividualcharacteristicresearch,Hirschman's(1989)role-

basedexplorationisanimportantstudy.Hirschmaninvestigatedsiximplicitrole-based

modelssubmittedbyparticipants.Sheexaminedhowthecreativeprocessisseenfrom

differentperspectiveswithinanagency,havingparticipantslayoutmodelsoftheprocess

whosecollectiveconclusionsofferupjustificationforresearchintothesocialand

personalaspectsofthecreationprocesswithintherealmofadvertising.Thearticle

assumesthatanexaminationofthecollaborationthatoccursduringthecreativeprocess,

andthesocialprocessthatresultsinacreativeexecution,arenotagiven,generalized

phenomena.Underthisassumption,Hirschmanconductsherstudyfromtheproduction

ofcultureperspective.Fromsuchaperspective,Hirschmanwasabletolookintothe

subjectivityoffinalproductownership.Shealsoexaminedtheextenttowhichpersonal

conflictsduringtheprocessareconveyedinthefinalproduct.Thestudyusedin-depth

interviewswithsixagencyprofessionalswhoeachplaydifferentrolesintheprocess.The

authorsfoundoverarchingpersonalandprofessionalgoalsbeyondthestatedgoalof

satisfyingtheclient(Hirschman,1989).

6

Thenotionofunderstandinghowqualitiessuchasempathyfactorintopersonal

creativeprocessesisalsovaluable,especiallyinthecontextofbroader,cross-cultural

consideration.West(1993)exploredthepersonalities,processesandphilosophiesof

advertisingagenciesinthreecountries,theUnitedStatesofAmerica,Englandand

Canada,andsoughttoexaminesuchdifferencesbasedonnationality.Thestudygave

preferencetogeneralizabilityoverdepth.Asurveyof900creativesat300agenciesfound

thatpersonalitiesacrosscountryborderswereverysimilar,rankingintelligenceand

originalityasdesirableskills.Philosophiesamongagencieswerefoundtobequite

similaraswell.Themaindifferenceobservedwasthatofthecreatives'involvementwiththecreationandimplementationofacampaign.WhileNorthAmericancreativestendto

believethattheyhavelessautonomyandcontroloverthefinalproductionprocessthan

theirU.K.counterparts,resultsindicatedthattheformerweremorecloselyinvolvedandhadmorestrategicrelationshipswithclientsthanU.K.creatives(West,1993).Thisbelief

wasfoundtoberelativelyconsistentamongallcreatives,regardlessofnationality,

indicatingabroadapplicationofcreativetheory.

Young(2000)outlinedthedifferencesbetweencopywriters'andartdirectors'

opinionsoftelevisionadvertising.Conducting100phoneinterviewsanddrawingfromarandomlyselectedpoolofcreativesfromadvertisingagenciesatamaximumoftwoper

agency,Youngsoughttounderstandhowcopywritersandartdirectorsworkinteams,

usingtheirrespectivedifferencescollaborativelytogeneratecreativebreakthroughs.It

wasfoundthatthemajorityofcreativesagreedthatinteractive,clear-cutandoriginal

messagesinadswereindicatorsofgoodadvertising.Two-thirdsalsoagreedthat

differencesexistbetweencopywritersandartdirectors(Young,2000).Thisdisconnect

7

amongadvertisingprofessionalsisreiteratedinHackleyandKover(2007)regarding

professionalidentityandcreatives.Itwasfoundthattheadvertisingworkplaceisa

constantsourceofconflictandfeelingsofinsecurityforcreatives,buttheyalsoseeitasa

worthwhilebattle.Creativesseekamoredefinedidentifyandfindpotentialfulfillmentin

survivingday-to-dayconflicts.Theseconflictsstemfromideologicaldifferencesonthepurposesofacampaign.Accountexecutivestendtopreferamorepragmaticapproach,

onedeemedappropriatetosatisfyclientneedsandnothingmore.Creatives'needfor

frequentidentityassurancepresentsitselfasanadditionalmotivebeyondclientgoals.Creativeswanttheworktobeoriginalandartisticinnature,adisplayofcreativeskill

andachievement,notjustafulfilledcontract.

Creativesfindconflictandinsecurityonapersonalandprofessionallevelwithinagencysettings,yetperceivethesesamesettingsasopportunitiesforpersonalsatisfactionandgrowth.Hackley&Kover(2007)focusonthepersonandprocessthroughwhichthe

creativefindshisorheridentitywithinacertainphysicalplace.Theresearchersfound

thatcreativesbelievethatworkplaceandprofessionalconflictsactuallybenefitthe

creative(Hackley&Kover,2007).Thisservesasastrongfoundationforexistingworkonthetopicofagencypractitioners,andasanacknowledgementofstrainswithinagency

dynamicsbasedondifferencesinpersonalperception.

ProcessStudies

Thiselementofthe3Pcreativemodelinvolvesthestudyof"theprocess

[practitioners]followindevelopingcreativeideas”(Sasser&Koslow,2008,p.6).Studiesincludedtheroleofmythinadvertisingcreation(Johar,Holbrook&Stern,

2001),howoriginalityandappropriatenessarevaluedasmeasuresofcreativityby

8

practitionersindifferentroles(Kilgour&Koslow,2009)andhaveeveninvestigatedtheoriesheldbycreatives,despitelackofacknowledgementthatsuchtheoriesexist

(Kover,1995).

Theprocessesthatadvertisingprofessionalsfollowinthecreationofcampaignsandadsarewellstudied(Reid&Rotfield,1976;Kover,1995;Johar,Holbrook&Stern,2001;Kilgour&Koslow,2009;Oliver&Ashley,2012).Understandinghowcreativity

occursandfunctionsisanimportantareaofresearch,aclaimthatcontinuestobe

supportedintheever-growinglistofresearchwithinthe3PModel(Sasser&Koslow,

2012).

Kover(1995)foundthatcopywritershaveasetofinternaltheoriesthattheyholdtobetrueandthattheyactonthem(Kover,1995).Thestudyfoundthatcopywriterspay

littleheedtoacademicandformaltheories,butoperateonwhattheyrefertoas

"commonsense."Thestudyusedasampleof20copywritersfromsixagencies,five

locatedinNewYorkCityandonelocatedinDetroit(Kover,1995).

Whilethese"commonsense"theoriesoperatewithouttheindividuals'

acknowledgingthem,researchintosuchtheories'alignmentwithotherdisciplineshasbeenapproached,suchasinJoharetal.(2001),whereresearchersexploredhowmythscouldbeidentifiedinadvertising.Theresearchersdesignedanexperimentthatdirectedartdirector-copywriterpairstoworkinaconvergentordivergentmanner,dependingon

theactivity.Atdifferentintervals,pairswouldbeinstructedtoeitherworkalone

(divergent)onanassignedtaskorcometogetherwithanartdirectorandworktogether(convergent)onasolution.Thegoalwastoexaminetherolesthatfourspecificmyths,

comedy,romance,tragedyandirony,playinthecreativeprocess.Individualsidentified

9

asexpertjudgesconsistingofacreativeperson,anadvertisingresearchperson,andanaccountplanner,thenratedanadcontainingacombined,multi-mythfocusasthemost

creative(Joharetal.,2001).

ThoughnotultimatelystudiedinJoharet.Al(2001),theconvergent-divergent

experimentstructurethatwasusedpresentsanopportunityforfurtherresearchthatsomehavealreadybeguntoexplore.Oneoftheauthorsofthe3Pmodelco-wroteastudythat

examinedhowconvergentanddivergentmodelsdifferintheireffectuponthecreative

processdependingontheindividual(Kilgour&Koslow,2009).Thestudyaddressestwomainwaysofenhancingcreativity,throughcreativelearningorthroughenhancingsocial

aspects.Theresearchersfoundthatdivergent-thinkingtechniquesarenotuniversally

applicable,and,morespecifically,thosewithalargerunderstandingofthedomainat

handwouldrespondbettertosuchtechniques(Kilgour&Koslow,2009).Whileaccount

sidepractitionerswereabletoworkwellinaconvergentmanner,lookingforthemost

appropriatemethodofsolvingaproblem,creativespreferredtoworkalone,valuingoriginalityasthebestmeasureofwhetheracampaignwascreative(Koslow,Sasser,

Riordan,2003;Kilgour&Koslow,2009).

Inanefforttounderstandhowtoimproveandenhancethecreativeprocess,OliverandAshley(2012)focusonimprovingthesystemthroughwhichcreativityismanagedwithinanagency.Insteadofconductingthequalitativeinterviewson-site,researchersanalyzedtheWallStreetJournal'sCreativeLeaderseriesovera30-yearperiodusingagroundedtheoryapproachtoaccountforcontextualinformationnotobtainedintheinterviews.Thisqualitativeanalysissoughttoanswerhowtocreatea

trulyeffectivemanagementsystemtooverseethecreativeprocess.Theyfoundthat

10

politicalgamesandeffortstocontrolthesituationendupharmingtheadvertising

process.Theyalsofoundthatcreativesthoughtthattheworkstructure,orhierarchy,

shouldnotbecomplicatedandshouldbeopentonaturaltalent(Oliver&Ashley,2012).Thestudy'sfocusonmodifyingandimprovingtheprocessofcreativitythroughchangesinmanagementandworkplacesrevealshowcontext,includingperceptionofcreativityin

advertising,perceptionofmanagement,canaffectcreativity.

PlaceStudies

Therolethattheenvironmentandcreativesettingplayinadvertisingcreativityisthe

subjectoftheplacecategory.Thiselementhasbeeninvestigatedinagencysettings,

seekingtounderstandphenomenasuchascontrolgamesthatadvertisingprofessionals

playwithoneanotherinanattempttoretainasenseofcontrolovertheworksetting

(Kover,1995).Kover,followingHirschman'srole-basedperspectivism,exploredhow

thedynamicinvolvingcopywritersandaccountexecutivesplaysoutinanagencysetting,examiningtheaspectsofcontrolwithinthiscontext.Theauthorfoundthatmanygamesareresultsofunwantedconfrontationbetweentwoopposingparties,accountexecutivesandcreatives.Theauthorsusedtwentysemi-structuredinterviews,ranginginlengthfrom

45-180+minutesinlength,onsubjectsfromNewYorkandDetroitanddidnotinclude

smalleragencies(Kover,1995).Understandingwhatoccursinanagencysettingfroma

varietyofroleshelpstoclarifytheimportanceofperceptioninadvertising.

Withinagencysettings,theleadershipprocesshasadistinctimpactupon

creativity(Kover,1995;Reid&Karambayya,2009).ReidandKarambayya(2009)

investigatedvariouselementsofthecreativeprocess.Theyquestionedtheconflict

resolutionthatoccursinadual-leaderenvironmentandhowthataffectsthosewithinthat

11

environmenttorealizetheircreativepotential.AresearchinitiativeexaminedeightcasestudiesinCanadawithestablisheddual-leadershipsettingswhereconflictwasknownto

bepresentandfoundthatwouldovershadowaworkplaceandinterferewithcreative

organizations(Reid&Karambayya,2009).Thestudyofthecreativeleadershipprocessisafertilegroundforresearchandisonethathasnotbeenfullyexplored.Insightsintoareasoffurtherresearchmaybefoundthroughtheproposedstudybyutilizingpotential

participantresponsesregardingperceptionsofwhatfactorsintocreativity.

Trend-MonitoringStudies

Studieswithafocusonexaminingtrendsandvarianceswithintheadvertising

industryarethesubjectofthissection.Reid,King,andDeLorme(1998)investigatedthe

beliefthatcreativityinadvertisingisindecline,abeliefthatwaschampionedby

researchersandhistorianssuchasStephenFox,JohnPhilipJones,andWilliam

Weilbacherinthe1990s(Reid,King,&DeLorme,1998).Theauthorsdevelopedthree

centralresearchquestionsthataskedwhethertop-levelcreativesbelievethereismoreorlesscreativity,whetherthefactorsforjudgingcreativityhavechanged,andhowdiffering

perceptionsofthesefactorshasevolvedsinceeachcreativehadenteredthefield.They

developedaquestionnairedirectedattop-levelagencycreativesthatfocusedon

originality,imagination,goal-direction,andproblemsolving.Theseweremailedto195

respondents,and83werereturned.Thefindingssuggestedthattherewasanalmost

unanimouslyperceivedupswingincreativity,withonlyonedissentingcase.Thiswas

seendespitedifferencesinage,practicingyears,etc.Thesecreativesfeltthatfactorsthat

affectedcreativityhadevolvedsomewhatfromwhattheyoriginallywere.Thisarticle

wasusedasthebasisforcomparisonforthepresentstudyanditsconclusionregardingan

12

upswingincreativitywascomparativelyanalyzed.

WhiteandSmith(2001)lookedintowhetherdemographicvariablesaffected

individualandcollectiveperceptionsofcreativityinadvertising.Researcherscomparedtheviewsofthosewithintheadvertisingindustrywiththoseofstudentsandthegeneral

public.AsamplewascomprisedofparticipantsfromSouthDakotaandGeorgia.

ParticipantsevaluatedfifteenprintadvertisementsusingtheCreativeProductSemanticScale.Thefindingssuggestthatstudents'perceptionsofcreativityweremorefavorablethanpubliclyheldstandards.Conversely,advertisers'viewstendedtobemorecynical

thanthoseofthegeneralpublic(White&Smith,2001).

Researchintoperceptionsofcreativityhasshownariftbetweencreativesand

accountexecutives.Underlyingassumptionsastowhetherartisticandoriginal

motivationsweighheavierthanappropriatenessofmethodhavebeenspecificallytakenintoconsideration(Koslow,Sasser,&Riordan,2003).Thestudylooksatdifferencesinperceptionofcreativity.Thearticleseekstoprovideamodeltoexplainwhydifferencesinperceptionoccurbetweenagencyroles.Theirfindingsprovidevaluableinsightintowhyperceptionsofcreativitydifferbasedontheroleoftheadvertiser.Itwasfoundthat

creativeswithinanagencyaremorepronetouseoriginalityasaprimarymeasureof

creativity,whereastheiraccountexecutivecounterpartsfavoredclient-appropriate,

potentiallylessoriginaloptions(Koslow,Sasser,&Riordan,2003).

Lastly,SasserandKoslowanalyzedexistingadvertisingresearch,lookingto

clarifyandexpanduponthemonitoringandresearchprocessesinvolvedinthe

advertisingcreativeprocess.(Sasser&Koslow,2008;Sasser&Koslow,2012).The

researchersaggregatedandexaminedmorethanthirtyyearsofresearchregardingthe

13

creativeprocess.(Sasser&Koslow,2008)Thearticleisprimarilyaliteraturereviewbut

suggestsfutureareasofstudy.Theresearchersselectedsamplesbeginningin1972andextensivelysearchedtheEBSCOandJournalofAdvertisingresourcestoensurecurrent

literaturewasincluded.Theauthorsexplicateareasthathavebeenwellstudied,and

identifywheregapsexist.TheauthorsalsobringupthatstudiesofProcesstendtouse

studentsubjectsinsteadofworkingpractitioners,alimitationthathasnotevolvedto

allowgeneralizabilityoffindingtothe