Developmental Aspects of Ideational Fluency, Flexibility, and Originality: South Africa and the United States

A cross-cultural study was conducted to provide evidence related to previous research results on the life-span development of three divergent thinking abilities (fluency, flexibility, and originality). Samples from four age groups (children, adolescents, young adults, adults) in each of two cultures (South Africa and the United States) served as participants. Participants responded to presentation of four groups of auditory stimuli recorded on a casette tape. Responses were scored for fluency, flexibility, and originality. Developmental trends across the four age groups displayed a similar pattern in both cultures for all three variables. The developmental shape of these patterns was similar to those displayed In previous research using larger samples in the United States.