Creativity and Innovation: Chinese and German Conceptions and Approaches

Creativity and innovation are important drivers of personal development, economic growth, and social progress. Managing people and organizations to promote creativity and innovation is essential if we want to realize the full creative potential of individuals and achieve the sustainable development of organizations. The current chapter draws upon sociocultural theories to compare China and Germany in terms of conceptions and approaches for creativity and innovation. The chapter starts with the definitions of creativity and innovation and introduces the sociocultural approach to creativity and innovation. Then it draws on the Componential Model of Creativity and Innovation proposed by Amabile and Pratt (2016) and summarizes major findings from the comparison of China and Germany in terms of motivation, thinking, and environment. Afterwards, it compares the conceptions of creativity and innovation as well as analyses the literature of comparative studies of creativity and innovation in both countries. In each section, major theories and study findings are summarized and management implications are made. China and Germany differ substantially in history, culture, politics, and society. The comparison of these two countries will help us understand the versatile nature of creativity and innovation, thus enriching the cooperation between the two cultures in terms of creativity and innovation.