Understanding scientific creativity criteria: Biologists’ assessments of PhD students’ creative products using the CAT

Abstract

While creativity in science is praised, its meaning varies among scientists and it is unclear how they assess it in doctoral education. Research on evaluating scientific creativity among PhD students is rare. This study reports findings from assessing creative products developed by PhD biology students (n = 20) as the final project of a 10-week creativity course. The products were assessed by 24 biologist-judges with 18 years of average experience (SD = 9.92) clustered into three groups using the Consensual Assessment Technique (CAT). Biologists measured for creativity and additional dimensions – Scientific Impact, Originality, Thoughtfulness, Appropriateness, and Liking – commonly associated with scientific creativity. Agreement among biologists was substantial for Creativity in Groups 1 and 3, and some of the other dimensions. However, Group 2 showed lower agreements in general and poor agreement for Scientific Impact and Thoughtfulness. The biologist-judges’ knowledge and background, as well as the products’ characteristics, appeared to have impacted assessments. The products deemed the most creative and original did not necessarily score as the most scientifically impactful or most relevant. While the CAT is suitable to evaluate creativity in scientific products, additional considerations would be needed to measure domain-specific components more reliably in doctoral education. A broader set of criteria and more detailed information about the products to analyze could lead to more rounded assessments.