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2021/2022

Theory and Techniques of Creativity

Code: 104734 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2503873 Interactive Communication OB 2 2
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Patricia Lujan Bellon
Email:
Patricia.Lujan@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
spanish (spa)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

External teachers

Roberto Rabanal

Prerequisites

None

Objectives and Contextualisation

  1. Propose a theoretical base on what creativity is, its processes and techniques, the importance of feeding through references and the knowledge of people and creative projects from a broad and multifaceted perspective.
  2. Practice creative techniques in order to provide tools for the creation of any creative product, interactive or not, in a simple and inspiring way.
  3. Learn to think in a disruptive way, to feed on references through daily activities, experiment and share ideas.
  4. Work as a team putting into practice the theoretical and practical knowledge of the subject to create an interactive product that can be consumed by thousands of people.
  5. Apply the gender perspective in project research, in creative and bibliographic references.
    Use of inclusive language in presentations.
  6. Have fun and discover that we are all creative.

Competences

  • Apply and integrate knowledge in the fields of social sciences, humanities and engineering to generate complex products and services tailored to citizens' needs.
  • Manage time efficiently and plan for short-, medium- and long-term tasks.
  • Search for, select and rank any type of source and document that is useful for creating messages, academic papers, presentations, etc.
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Conceive original ideas applicable to the creation of interactive content and services.
  2. Cross-check information to establish its veracity, using evaluation criteria.
  3. Distinguish the salient features in all types of documents within the subject.
  4. Interpret and discuss documents on the main theories on creativity.
  5. Orally present exercises on the subject in a clear and organised way.
  6. Plan and execute creative work.
  7. Present a summary of the studies made, orally and in writing.
  8. Submit course assignments on time, showing the individual and/or group planning involved.

Content

  1. What is creativity?
  2. Creative process
  3. The references
  4. Creative techniques

Methodology

The calendar will be available on the first day of class. Students will find all information on the Virtual Campus: the description of the activities, teaching materials, and any necessary information for the proper follow-up of the subject. In case of a change of teaching modality for health reasons, teachers will make readjustments in the schedule and methodologies.

Methodology

To the theoretical part on creativity and creative techniques will be added:

  1. Practical group or individual exercises to apply different creative techniques.
  2. Viewing of campaigns, projects, products, content, talks, articles ... relevant to the understanding of creativity.
  3. We will do a continuous search for surprising and interesting references that can inspire the group.
  4. Individual work "My Creative Notebook".
  5. Final work in group. Create an interactive product in which creativity, processes and techniques are explained. The application of what was learned in the course will be scored as well as the way it is produced. Make it easy to understand, edible, authentic ... It can be in the form of a blog, web, app, IG, Tiktok (or even paper).


Sources of learning

  1. Theoretical

    • Face-to-face classes.
    • Viewing of campaigns, projects, products, content, talks, articles ... relevant to understanding creativity + debate in class.
     
  2. Practices

    • Weekly individual or group exercises to be done in class during the second part of the theory classes and / or at home.
    • Continuous search for creative, surprising and interesting references that can inspire the group. Preferably related to interactive communication (websites, facilities, VR projects, actions, campaigns ...) but WOW projects may also be included in any format.
    • Individual work "My Creative Notebook".
    • Final work in group: Creativityand its Techniques.



Types of teaching

  1. On-site

    • Theoretical and practical classes in the classroom.
    • Correction and group comment of the practices.
    • Discussions about readings or videos that we have seen.
    • Scheduled tutoring of the Final Course Work.
     
  2. No face-to-face

    • Search for references outside school hours.
    • Some practices will end outside school hours and will be shared the next day of class.
    • Elaboration of the Course Work that each group will carry out outside school hours and that they will share periodically with their tutor in group seminars throughout the course.

 

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Practical exercises to apply different creative techniques 31 1.24 1, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Theory classes on creativity, process and creative techniques 15 0.6 2, 3, 7, 4, 5
Viewing of campaigns, projects, products, content, talks, articles ... relevant to the understanding of creativity. 4 0.16 3, 7, 4
Type: Supervised      
Final work in group. Interactive Product: Creativity and its Techniques. 8 0.32 1, 2, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Type: Autonomous      
Final work in group. Interactive Product: Creativity and its Techniques. 40 1.6 1, 2, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Individual work "My Creative Notebook" 42.5 1.7 1, 3, 7, 4, 6
Practical exercises to apply different creative techniques 4.5 0.18 1, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5

Assessment

1. Self-assessment —> 5%

Self-criticism is key when working with ideas.
No one better than you knows what you have done during the course.
Honestly evaluate your effort, your desire to work, the originality of your ideas, the tireless search for new references, the books you have read, your evolution ... Everything that has grown and stimulated your creative muscle and your desire to find creative paths throughout the year.
A 10, if it is not real, is not an option.

2. Completion of classroom practices —> 20%

Practices in class and outside of class are compulsory.


3. Individual practical work "My Creative Notebook" —> 35%

  • Ideabooks will be delivered to the tutors.
  • It will be valued:
  • perseverance and daily work,
  • the solutions to the practical exercises proposed in class,
  • own ideas about creativity,
  • creative thoughts and references,
  • the use of creative techniques learned
  • the visual representation of the content through images, mind maps, drawings, photographic cutouts,
  • and in general, any original idea that contributes to the creative work being carried out daily. We hope you have been fueled by creativity every day.


4. Work and Final Presentation of an Interactive Product: "Creativity: Techniques, Processes, Referents" —> 40%

  • It will be valued:
  • The originality, simplicity, functionality, organization and formal development of the interactive product (web, IG, tiktok, blog, app ...) that includes what Creativity is, its techniques, processes and references ...
  • The oral presentation, in an understandable, pleasant, simple and clear and structured way of the work.
  • The presentation of all the members of the group.
  • The formal and final delivery of the interactive product that canbe used by thousands of people.

 


RE-EVALUATION

  • Re-submit corrected and improved practices and / or Final Work that has not been approved.
  • The reevaluation is in the same semester; It is the second call. There is no third call.
  • It will take dedication, desire, self-demand and fun.

Students will be entitled to the revaluation of the subject. They should present a minimum of activities that equals two-thirds of the total grading.

To have access to revaluation, the previous grades should be less than or equal to 3,5.

The activity "My Creative Notebook" is excluded from the recovery process as it is a project to be carried out daily.

The student who performs any irregularity (copy, plagiarism, identity theft...) will be qualified with 0 in this assignment or exam. In case there are several irregularities, the final grade of the subject will be 0.

The proposed teaching methodology and evaluation activities may undergo some modifications depending on the health authorities' attendance restrictions. 

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Classroom Practice 20% 1 0.04 1, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Individual practical work "My Creative Notebook" 35% 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Self appraisal 5% 0.5 0.02 1, 2, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5
Work and Final Presentation of an Interactive Product: "Creativity: Techniques, Processes, Referents" 40% 2 0.08 1, 2, 3, 7, 4, 6, 8, 5

Bibliography

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  • Aced, Cristina. Relaciones públicas 2.0: Cómo gestionar la comunicación corporativa en el entorno digital. UOC
  • Adair, John Eric. The Art of Creative Thinking: How to Be Innovative and Develop Great Ideas
  • Anthony, Jay. Be Creative - a Quick Guide to Developing Brilliant Ideas & Unlocking Your Creative Potential. Jay Anthony Writing
  • Banet-Weiser, Sarah. AuthenticTM: The Politics of Ambivalence in a Brand Culture. NYU Press
  • Bernard, Andreas. Theory of the Hashtag. John Wiley & Sons
  • Blackmore, Susan. La máquina de los memes. Planeta
  • Buzan, Tony. Cómo Crear Mapas Mentales. Urano
  • Catmull, Edwin. Creatividad, S.A.: Cómo llevar la inspiración hasta el infinito y más allá. Conecta
  • De Bono, Edward. El pensamiento lateral: Manual de creatividad. Paidos
  • De Bono, Edward. Seis sombreros para pensar. Paidós
  • De Bono, Edward. Serious Creativity: How to Be Creative Under Pressure and Turn Ideas Into Action. Random House
  • Nielsen, Dorte & Thurber, Sarah. Conexiones creativas. GG
  • Fallon, Pat. & Senn, Fred. Exprime la idea
  • Farran Teixidó, Eduard. Desde la trinchera: Manual de supervivencia en creatividad publicitaria. UOC
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  • Kleon, Austin. Keep Going: 10 Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad. Workman Publishing
  • Kleon, Austin. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative. Workman Publishing
  • Lamarre, Guillaume. La vía del creativo: Guía para reinventar nuestra práctica y nuestra mirada. Gustavo Gil
  • Lanier, Jaron. You Are Not a Gadget. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
  • Lupi, Giorgia. Dear Data. The Youth Coalition
  • Mahon, Nik. Ideación. Cómo generar grandes ideas publicitarias. GG
  • Obradors, Matilde. Creatividad y generación de ideas. Universitat de Valencia. Servei de publicacions
  • Padilla, Margarita. El kit de la lucha en Internet. Traficantes de Sueños
  • Peirano, Marta. El enemigo conoce el sistema: Manipulación de ideas, personas e influencias después de la economía de la atención. Debate
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  • Zafra, Remedios. El entusiasmo. Precariedad y trabajo creativo en la era digital





Software

The calendar will be available on the first day of class. Students will find all information on the Virtual Campus: the description of the activities, teaching materials, and any necessary information for the proper follow-up of the subject. In case of a change of teaching modality for health reasons, teachers will make readjustments in the schedule and methodologies.