Gender Differences in Creativity: A Systematic Literature Review

Tatiana de Cássia Nakano,Priscila Zaia,Karina da Silva Oliveira

doi:10.1590/0102.3772e372116

Abstract

Abstract In order to understand trends reported in research carried out about gender differences in creativity, a systematic review of the scientific literature on the electronic databases Scielo, Pepsic, CAPES Periodicals, Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Elite, Redalyc, and MEDLINE Complete was held. The 133 publications analysis showed that the articles were published between 1975 and 2020, most of them of international origin (82.71%). Most studies reported gender differences, with 45.20% in favor of women. Another 23.28% in favor of men, and 31.50%, oscillating according to the content evaluated. There was no consensus on the issue since inconsistent results were found, sometimes indicating the predominance of better results achieved by women, sometimes by men, in the same measures. This finding reinforces the importance that studies of this nature consider the influence of other factors, such as attitudes, motivation, opportunities, and the type of measure used to establish more accurate results.

Highlights

In order to understand trends reported in research carried out about gender differences in creativity, a systematic review of the scientific literature on the electronic databases Scielo, Pepsic, CAPES Periodicals, Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Elite, Redalyc, and MEDLINE Complete was held
The gender difference has recently been explored within the psychological research related to this construct (Abraham, 2016), marking itself a controversial issue for more than a century (Odzemir & Sak, 2013) and investigated as one of the factors responsible for the variation in individual creativity
The researchers found no consistency in studies related to the debate on gender differences, as observed in previous studies (Baer & Kaufman, 2008; Prado et al, 2016; Sayed & Mohamed, 2013)

Summary

Introduction

In order to understand trends reported in research carried out about gender differences in creativity, a systematic review of the scientific literature on the electronic databases Scielo, Pepsic, CAPES Periodicals, Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Elite, Redalyc, and MEDLINE Complete was held. RESUMO – Para compreender as tendências relatadas nas pesquisas realizadas sobre diferenças de gênero na criatividade, uma revisão sistemática da literatura científica foi feita nas bases eletrônicas Scielo, Pepsic, Periódicos CAPES, Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Elite, Redalyc e MEDLINE Complete. Considering the amplitude of the construct, a dimension that has received prominence in the investigation of this construct involves research on environmental conditions and situations external to the individual that, in some way, promote or inhibit creative expression (Nakano & Wechsler, 2012) Among these factors, the gender difference has recently been explored within the psychological research related to this construct (Abraham, 2016), marking itself a controversial issue for more than a century (Odzemir & Sak, 2013) and investigated as one of the factors responsible for the variation in individual creativity. The theme has been controversial and based on different views (Sayed & Mohamed, 2013)

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion