Investigation and adaptation of components and indicators for measuring the creativity of architectural works

Abstract

Background: All stages of an architectural design process, from research and analysis to form generation, require creativity. Therefore, in architecture, it is crucial to be familiar with creativity and use it correctly. Despite conducting various researches in this field, there is still no common understanding of how to evaluate creativity in architecture and most of the evaluations are based on subjective criteria, which has led to uncertainties and the impossibility of correct evaluation of the work. Aims: This study is aimed at identifying and prioritizing the components and indicators affecting the evaluation of architects' creativity. Method: This research has a applied goal, and it has been conducted using an exploratory mixed method. In the first step, the components and indicators were identified using the meta-synthesis method. By searching the databases with purposive sampling. In the quantitative section, data were collected using the questionnaire designed in 2020, and the questionnaires were distributed among 110 participants, including professors, architects, and the staff of the architecture-related management organizations in the city of Mashhad, Iran, who were selected using the cluster sampling method. After collecting the questionnaires and investigating them, they were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis. Results: The results approved the conceptual model, including the components; novelty, practicability, usefulness and the artistic aspect )P = .001(. Conclusions: The results approved novelty, practicability, usefulness and artistic aspect are the important components for the evaluation of architects' creativity in architectural design

Keywords

• creativity
• architectural work
• evaluation
• meta-synthesis