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This general thesis, which applies to varied domains and levels of creativity, is supported by three specific proposals about the role of constraints in creativity, each of which is developed and illustrated with examples. First, constraints provide the criteria for the evaluation of creative outcomes, which can vary as a function of the emphasis on novel usefulness or useful novelty. Second, constraints are critical in each step of the creative process: problem finding, problem construction, and problem solving. Third, constraints play a key role in both open-ended and closed-ended creative problems. These arguments are supported by specific predictions, concerning: (a) task differences in whether novelty or usefulness are emphasized more; (b) individual differences in the processing of constraints (some may favor flexible constraint exploration, while others may favor persistent constraint exploitation), which I hypothesize also correlate with (c) engagement in different types of creative problem-solving (more open-ended, of the sort encountered in art, vs. more closed-ended, of the sort encountered in science, business, and engineering).<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/00332941221114421","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,12]],"date-time":"2022-07-12T08:55:51Z","timestamp":1657616151000},"page":"1818-1843","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":24,"title":["Creativity From Constraint Exploration and Exploitation"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"127","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3560-4165","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Catrinel","family":"Tromp","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Rider University, Lawrenceville, NJ, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,12]]},"reference":[{"key":"bibr1-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1037\/aca0000194"},{"key":"bibr2-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0149206318805832"},{"key":"bibr3-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0956797616634665"},{"key":"bibr4-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0022022117713153"},{"key":"bibr5-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0040-1625(99)00104-3"},{"key":"bibr6-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/spc3.12062"},{"key":"bibr7-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1037\/0021-9010.91.4.963"},{"key":"bibr8-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1207\/s15326934crj0801_4"},{"key":"bibr9-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.obhdp.2014.06.001"},{"key":"bibr10-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s10798-019-09496-7"},{"key":"bibr11-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1754-9434.2009.01154.x"},{"key":"bibr12-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4324\/9780203508527"},{"key":"bibr13-00332941221114421","volume-title":"Cahiers de Georges Braque","author":"Braque G.","year":"1947"},{"key":"bibr14-00332941221114421","volume-title":"Change by design: How design thinking transforms organizations and inspires innovation","author":"Brown T.","year":"2009"},{"key":"bibr15-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1162\/REST_a_00470"},{"key":"bibr16-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1037\/0003-066X.54.3.165"},{"key":"bibr17-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1098\/rstb.2007.2098"},{"key":"bibr18-00332941221114421","volume-title":"The novel that riveted France during lockdown arrives in the U.S","author":"Cohen R.","year":"2021"},{"key":"bibr120-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2020.575067"},{"key":"bibr19-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1207\/s15326934crj1803_13"},{"key":"bibr20-00332941221114421","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9781316104811"},{"key":"bibr118-00332941221114421","unstructured":"Csikszentmihalyi M., Getzels J. 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