Influence of Environmental Information on Expert-perceived Creativity of Ideas

Abstract

Target setting in ecodesign generally requires of handling environmental information in the early design stages. Even if commonly encouraged in literature, recent research in the field of creativity show that exposure to models of the product can hinder creativity in the idea generation process. This papers discusses a case study where three experts in design are asked to rate the ideas previously generated by 56 students. These students had been originally delivered different types of environmental information, usually available in the early design stages. The perception of the experts regarding creativity, feasibility and originality of ideas were analyzed and conclusions are drawn for the sort of information that should be used in the early design stages.