Divergent Thinking

 You can’t study the creative process very long without hearing about divergent thinking. What does it mean as a psychology term, and what does it mean for students who are gifted? How can we apply this knowledge to our projects? That's what we explored in this lesson.

 

Convergent and Divergent Thinking Defined: 

- Convergent thinking is systematic and represents thinking in a straight line towards the "best" solution. When you are asked to fill in a blank on a test (or reduce something to a simple and obvious answer), you are using convergent thinking.

- Divergent thinking, on the other hand, is open-ended, web-like, and thrives on making flexible connections. Both thinking styles are needed while creating, but it’s great to know which one you prefer along with the strengths and limitations of each.

-It's also fun to look at and discuss the notebooks of prolific thinkers such as Thomas Edison and Leonardo DaVinci to get a sense of divergent thinking: https://www.openculture.com/2018/07/leonardo-da-vincis-list-circa-1490.html

 

There are also different “reasoning styles” closely related to divergent and convergent thinking.

 

Inductive and Deductive Reasoning Defined: Inductive reasoning starts with something specific (like data on what could be the most popular topic to write about or create a business around) and then moves to a more generalized conclusion (or an actual finished piece of written work). 

 

Deductive reasoning, however, starts with something general (like a writing topic you are genuinely passionate about) and moves to something specific (such as putting on a title when you are finished).

Deductive reasoning is top-down while inductive reasoning is bottom-up. Likewise, convergent thinking starts broad and ends narrow while divergent thinking starts from a central point and moves out. 

 

No particular style of reasoning is better than the other. They are all needed at different times. Divergent thinking, however, is most commonly associated with creativity and brainstorming. 

 

The flexibility to work forwards and backward (and side to side, and up and down!) multiple times while working on a creative project is what makes truly great works possible.

 

Optional questions to consider:

-What style of thinking do you gravitate towards while writing a paper? 

-One way to test this is to see if you like to come up with a “working title” first (inductive/divergent) or consider the name of your title at the end (deductive/convergent)?

-What activities/careers require divergent thinking the most? Leadership? Art?

-Could operating with limits (like those imposed by certain genres) increase creativity in certain circumstances? 

If you’d like to learn more about convergent and divergent thinking, check out this video.

 

Thanks for a fun lesson and have a great week! Please let me know if you have any questions!