The Domain Specificity of Creativity in Young Design Entrepreneurs

Design entrepreneurship is growing significantly in most countries. More designers are seeking full- and part-time roles as entrepreneurs than before. With growing global market competitiveness, designers must pay more attention to design entrepreneurship. This study investigated the domain specificity of creativity in five young design entrepreneurs, particularly in decision-making when leading design critiques with protocol analysis. We used linkography to understand verbal expressions of personality traits, thinking styles, and motivations during critique sessions. To determine creative domain specificity, we analyzed correlations between creative design decision-making and specificity. We determined that conscientiousness had the highest mean score (37.47), and agreeableness, the lowest (12.34), suggesting young design entrepreneurs’ tendency to exhibit conscientiousness in domain specificity of creativity; they skillfully focus on specific objectives, and they organize and work diligently. However, they are unlikely to have agreeable personality traits: they do not easily follow other people but show idealism in their ability to lead their teams’ design decisions. Intrinsic motivation had the highest mean score (50.45), suggesting that participants aptly made decisions based on self-determination, self-perception, and an orientation toward their desired professional achievement. This study was important in that the findings could be implemented in design curricula for improving designers’ capacity.