How do board games develop creativity?

Creativity is an essential skill of the 21st century. It refers to the ability to generate original and relevant ideas. Creativity helps both in everyday life and in creating the future world. This skill is required in many jobs that are not necessarily artistic or creative at first glance, such as managerial positions. From an economic perspective, creative products account for an increasing share of economic growth. Therefore, it is important to find ways that develop the creative potential of children and adults. And research conducted by scientists shows that it is possible. And this can be done in a pleasant way, with the help of appropriate leisure activities. So how do board games develop creativity?

Board games help you learn

A number of different studies use board games as a learning tool. This is because games are effective in engaging people in the learning process. For example, there are various variations of Monopoly designed to teach new information and new practices, such as in nursing or accounting. There are thousands of board games, each of which is unique and can be used in different situations – you just need to choose the right one.

Board games help learning because they:
• Facilitates concentration,
• Enables creating an environment favorable to the adoption of new ideas,
• Enables participants to “learn by doing”,
• Competitiveness encourages players to deeply understand the rules of the game,
• Breaks encourage players’ reflection and discussion,
• During breaks, the learner can naturally intervene and give his explanations.

So, if games are a powerful learning tool, it seems logical to try to use them to improve people’s creativity. After all, developmental psychology also talks about the fact that playing is one of the main activities of childhood and that some of the most important changes in early childhood occur thanks to play.

Research: Board games foster creativity

Maxence Mercier and Todd Lubart from the University of Paris conducted a study analyzing the possible effects of board games on the creative potential of young adults. 55 university students participated in the study. At the time, the focus was on board games, excluding role-playing or computer games.
At the beginning, the participants had to complete a task: to come up with original and unusual ways in which various objects can be used, e.g. pencil, chair, etc. Then the rules of one of the board games were explained to them and they just played for half an hour. At the end of the game, the participants were again given a creativity task.

The study showed that after playing the board game, creativity was especially enhanced in those players who had average and lower originality of thinking. So, if you think that you lack creativity, here is some great news for you – board games can help you develop it.

Board games are an effective mean of improving different thinking abilities and creativity. In addition, it can be a quick and effective way to increase creative output when learning new things, solving a problem at school, university, family or workplace, for example, using a game as a “brainstorming” tool.

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