Features of Creativity as Expressed in the Construction of New Analogical Problems by Intellectually Gifted Students

Abstract

The present research attempts to provide empirical data on creativity features that were employed by gifted stu-dents, as compared to “regular” ones, in the process of constructing analogical problems. The research is coping with two major components of creativity: a) Readiness to get involved in the construction of new analogical problems and b) Creative features in the constructed problems. The results indicate that: 1) Gifted students were more creative than their age peers on the dimensions that were defined as relative creativity. 2) Relative creativ-ity was especially salient in tasks that involved insight thinking. 3) Despite the high relative creativity of the gifted students' their comparative creativity, i.e. their creative capabilities as compared to the optimum, were limited. The results are coherent with the need and recommendations for progressive nurturing of gifted students towards fulfilling their creative potential.