Moving Away from the Basic, Adopting a New Approach to the Creative Process

Abstract

The role of creativity in Industrial Design Engineering’s design process is fundamental and indispensable. Without it, design loses its potential for innovation – the process through which ideas generated by the creative process may be implemented attaining commercial value. The impact a product has can often be attributed to creativity in the engineering design process. Design in the arts is often considered to be the creative process per se, whereas in engineering, it refers to a concise record or encapsulation of appropriate concepts and experiences. For this reason, creativity is now a key skill in the practice of engineering and an essential part of its training. The present article discusses theories of the creative process which have been proposed in the last century. The stage based model of the creative process is discussed and the evolution of these models is mapped out. Further perspectives are identified for upcoming research; bringing data science and creativity together in such a way will necessitate development in both design and models of creativity.