Creating home: Socioeconomic status and home environment as predictors of family climate for creativity

Abstract

Does a family's economic, cultural, and social capital link to the family climate for creativity at home? To address this question, we analyze the relationship between a family's socioeconomic status and climate for creativity in the parent-child relationship and specify how the home environment mediates between these components. The data come from a quantitative study of 155 families with children aged 6 to 10. We use observations, semi-structured interviews, and self-report techniques, with the majority of data (93.5 %) obtained from mothers. Results indicate that a family's socioeconomic status (family SES) is positively associated with creating a home environment that fosters creativity. Moreover, a family's SES exerts its effect on three factors of the climate for creativity in parent-child relationships (encouragement to experience novelty and variety, encouragement of nonconformism, and encouragement to fantasize) through the mediating effect of the home environment. These findings were discussed alongside future research directions and the proposal for possible mechanisms of family influences on the development of children's creativity.