THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE REWARD SYSTEMS USED TO ENCOURAGE INDIVIDUAL CREATIVITY: AN ATTITUDINAL STUDY OF INDIVIDUALS AWARDED PATENTS IN 1985 (ENGINEER, SCIENTIST)

The Problem. The problem was to determine if the reward systems used in industry do encourage the creative individual. Further, the study sought to establish which of the different rewards systems widely used were the most effective. The importance of the study was to develop techniques that would raise the levels of creativity. The intended result of this study would be to identify a system of rewards offering the potential for a national improvement in the level of creativity.; Method. Data were collected by means of a survey to establish which of the rewards experience by creative people in industry were effective. The population surveyed were one hundred patent holders, a group of people with identified creative talent. Perceptions of the effectiveness of the different rewards they had received were recorded, and actual creative performance compared with the types of reward received.; Results. The conclusions demonstrated that the most effective reward was the intrinsic satisfaction. Substantial financial rewards were effective, medium levels of financial rewards were popular with the employers, but were not of major importance to the recipients, and small rewards were regarded as an insult or an irritation. Significant problems were identified with the management techniques employed in dealing with creative people.; Finally, and most interestingly, in this survey group the creativity increased with age. Several reasons are postulated for this.; One is that with complex technology, many years of an individuals professional life has to be spent acquiring extensive knowledge and experience required to fully understand problems, and subsequently postulating and implementing novel and creative solutions. Futhermore, a creative individual in industry needs time to develop a cadre of competent and trustworthy associates to augment his expertise.; A lifetime can be spent developing these capabilities. As technology becomes more pervasive within our society, the mature and competent technologist may become as highly esteemed as the elderly politician or cleric.