Mel Rhodes: The Man Behind the Four P's of Creativity

Written by Jon Michael Fox

The Value of Classifying Things

Classifying the fundamental elements in any discipline is the precursor to growth for that discipline. “In the history of the sciences, every branch floundered until facts were organized and classified. After a classification system was devised, the branch advanced rapidly” (Rhodes, 1961, p 309). Classifications allow us to sort the same from the other.

Person, Process, Product and Press

The 4Ps represent the nature of creative Persons, the Processes they use, the Products or outcome of their efforts, and the Press, or environment that supports or hinders creativity. For those interested in where words come from, Press comes from the Latin word pressus, meaning a box or container to put things in – the environment being the place where the other 3Ps live. Perhaps more up-to-date is the notion of Press being the elements that press in on us, helping or hindering our creative expression.

BioSketch

Over the years I have been saying to my undergraduate students, “Mel Rhodes gave us a classification scheme for understanding creativity. Then he died. Creativity will kill you.” Tongue-in-cheek as that may be, I decided to find out what I could about the man who was so important to those of us studying the field of creativity. He deserves more than my odd-ball humor.

Here is what I have found about James Melvin Rhodes. (As a parenthetical note, if anyone knows additional information, or can correct erroneous data, please let me know. I would like to eventually get his story on Wikipedia.)

Mel Rhodes was born on June 14, 1916 to Waldo and Rhoda Rhodes. As far as I can determine, he grew up in central Pennsylvania.

He received his baccalaureate degree in 1938 from Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. (Juniata College is in the central part of Pennsylvania – about 20 miles southwest of State College, PA). He served in the military from 1941 until 1946. After World War II, Rhodes went on to Penn State where he earned his masters degree in education in August 1950 (State College, Pennsylvania). His major was in psychology. He went on to Arizona State University and was awarded a PhD in Education at ASU in Tempe. (Tempe is part of the greater Phoenix area.) His dissertation was signed on May 16, 1956.

Rhodes accepted a position as an assistant professor of education at the College of Education, University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona in 1957 at the completion of his doctorate. He was on faculty there from 1957 to 1971.

Rhodes died in Highlands, Florida (Sebring area) on April 29, 1976 at the age of 60.

Alpha Zeta Connection

As an additional piece of information, Rhodes was a member of Alpha Zeta. -- Alpha Zeta is a professional agricultural fraternity. The only reason it is meaningful to me is that I too am a member of Alpha Zeta – although I have not been involved with the organization since 1967 when I was in college training to be a landscape architect. I don't know what his connection was; I never met the man.

Dissertation

In the mid-1950’s Mel Rhodes was working on his doctoral dissertation -- The Dynamics of Creativity: An Interpretation of the Literature on Creativity with a Proposed Procedure for Objective Research, at Arizona State University. Rhodes wrote, “The primary purpose of this dissertation is to propose a new procedure for use in studying children who show high potential ability for creativity” (p.1). During the development of his dissertation, Rhodes collected 56 definitions for the words creativity and imagination.

His interest, among others, was to find a core definition of creativity. His research included looking at the creativity literature of the time to see what might be learned – data mining the old fashioned way. In fact he did not find a universal definition of creativity, but rather a way of thinking about it. He identified four strands of creativity. To this day we use his schema - the 4P's - as an appropriate and robust way to examine the myriad issues around this highest form of thinking. In 1961 Rhodes wrote his seminal article An Analysis of Creativity and published it in Phi Beta Kappen. A thorough explanation of his 4Ps can be found there.

In his article, Rhodes wrote, “About five years ago I set out to find a definition of the word creativity. I was interested in imagination, originality, and ingenuity. In time I had collected forty definitions of creativity and sixteen of imagination” (p. 306).

“But as I inspected my collection I observed that the definitions are not mutually exclusive. They overlap and intertwine. When analyzed, as through a prism, the content of the definitions form four strands. Each strand has unique identity academically, but only in unity do the four strands operate functionally” (p. 307).

Rhodes went on to define Person, Process, Press and Product:

“The term person, as used here, covers information about personality, intellect, temperament, physique, traits, habits, attitudes, self-concept, value systems, defense mechanisms, and behavior” (p. 307).

The term process applies to motivation, perception, learning, thinking, and communication” (p. 308).

The term press refers to the relationship between human beings and their environment” (p. 308).

“The word idea refers to a thought which has been communicated to other people in the form of words, paint, clay, metal, stone, fabric, or other material. When an idea becomes embodied into tangible form it is called a product.

Current Value of the 4Ps

Rhodes gave us a viable way to look at creativity. Because creativity is absolutely transdisciplinary – meaning it spans all disciplines – a schematic approach is most useful in understanding the nature and nurture of creativity from both a research and application point of view. It is easy to separate creativity into Person, Process, Product and Press in the attempt to understand the parts, but one must recognize that the 4P's work together -- when taking an applied approach to creativity one must consider the "ecology" of creativity.

Although classification systems can be limiting, they can be freeing at the same time. We have to start somewhere. Rhodes and his 4Ps has helped us move from the myths of creativity to a productive understanding of creativity – and how to apply it. Thank you, Mel Rhodes, for your gift.

References

Rhodes, M. (1961). An analysis of creativity, Phi Beta Kappen, 42, 305-310.

Rhodes, M. (1956). The dynamics of creativity: An interpretation of the literature on creativity with a proposed procedure for objective research. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Arizona State University, Tempe.

Osborn's Personal Papers

by Mike Fox and Jo Yudess

22 Boxes of Papers
Alex Osborn’s personal papers are available at the University at Buffalo’s Special Collection Library. Recently, We I went to UB’s Special Collections library (North Campus) to look at Osborn’s personal papers. Lots of boxes of his work – 22 in all.

Mike’s Observations
I started with Box 11 Creative Education Movement, circa 1963. Most of the work I read covered drafts of his speech to the 9th Annual Creative Problem Solving Institute in the summer of 1963. He refined, re-typed, refined again until he got what he wanted. His handwriting: a bit scrawley, but readable. The best part was the precision in his thinking.

Top Experience
There were letters to and from such notables as Guilford, Torrance and Taylor. These letters showed the respect each had for the other. There is nothing quite like a bunch of high-powered people trying to figure out a new challenge.

This isn’t a book, all polished and refined. This isn’t a story told to us in a college course. This is Alex Osborn’s own handwriting. The feeling of being connected is visceral.

If you plan to investigate this collection, prepare to spend some time. It’s sizeable. Each file box has multiple file folders. I managed to get through two file folders in the box. After two hours or so, I ran out of brain glucose, so I had to quite. Who says that research isn’t fun?

When You Go …
The Osborn collection is on the premises. You don’t have to make arrangements ahead of time. The special collections research room has rules. All note taking is by pencil or computer. No pens allowed. You can one or two boxes at a time – maybe three if you’re lucky. They will not bring all 22 boxes to you at one time. Copying services are available, but expect a delay. Copying is done later, then mailed out. Expect a fee per page.


Jo ‘s Observations
I examined materials in Box 12, Patentable Ideas, circa 1949-1951, thinking they would be Osborn’s inventions, but discovered that was not the case. After publication of Your Creative Power in 1948, Osborn was inundated with requests from readers to help them get their ideas produced. It became such a volume of letters that he used a form letter to reply. He acknowledged the difficulty in sending products to a company and sympathized with the writers. Part of the letter explained that he would return their items, but could not comment or review them without a waiver of indemnity. Some of the ideas, names for products, for example, might be things his advertising firm had already conceived.

He was concerned that there was no formal process for people to use for this purpose. He and a friend from England, P. Clavell Blount, wrote to each other frequently trying to get a clearing house for ideas or a National Association of Suggestion Systems underway in either country. After two years of this effort, he began organizing the letters and his thoughts to use as background for chapters 32 and 33 in Wake Up Your Mind (1952). He asked friends, family and co-workers to write to many large organizations to ask their requirements for submission of ideas as part of the data collected.

A Few Notable Quotes
In Osborn’s scrawly handwriting was “Got a good idea? Then you need idea upon idea to make good on your good idea.” In a letter to Osborn in 1950, Fred W. Leu wrote, “Industry kills ideas by discarding men at the very age when they begin to develop them.” One irate writer complained that his invention of radioactive golf balls, which could be found in any rough with a Geiger counter, was rejected by the company he sent it to because the golf balls were too dangerous to carry around.
As Mike and I only examined two of many boxes, there are probably many other interesting pieces of information to be found. A search of this material might make an interesting thesis or project. It is housed at UB because he was a graduate and on the board of directors at the University of Buffalo when it was still a private institution.

From the University at Buffalo’s Special Collection Library Website
Here is the data on Osborn and his collection. I have transferred it from the UB’s Special Collections website. I put it here so you don’t have to find it on your own!

Alexander Faickney Osborn, 1888-1966

Alex Osborn’s personal papers are available at the University at Buffalo’s Special Collection Library, 420 Capen Hall (North campus).
Ph: (716) 645-2918
URL: http://library.buffalo.edu/archives
There are 22 boxes of his papers in the archives.
Title: Alexander F. Osborn Papers, 1948-1966
Abstract: The papers of Alexander F. Osborn, founder of Batten, Barton, Durstine and Osborn, and the Creative Education Foundation consist primarily of his professional activities

Information for Users
Preferred Citation: [Description and dates], Box/folder number, MS016, Alexander F. Osborn Papers, 1948-1966, University Archives, State University of New York at Buffalo.
Terms of Access and Use: Alexander F. Osborn Papers, 1948-1966, are open for research.
Copyright: Researchers must obtain the written permission of the holder(s) of copyright and the University Archives before publishing quotations from materials in the collection. Most papers may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures unless otherwise specified.

The Alexander F. Osborn Papers were donated to the University Archives by Alexander Osborn and the Creative Education Foundation in January 1967.

Scope and Content Note
Original manuscripts and work files, circa 1948-1963, of Osborn's books, Your Creative Power (1948), Wake up Your Mind (1952), Applied Imagination (1953, revised 1957 and 1963); files on the Creative Education Foundation, including annual reports, 1954-1962, publications, including guides, directives, reprinted articles and speeches, circa 1958-1963. Teaching Tools of the Creative Education Foundation include instructor's manuals and student workbooks, 1959-1963. Creative Education Foundation include instructor's manuals and student workbooks, 1963-1964, consists primarily of requests for literature and information.

Series I. Your Creative Power, circa 1948
Container List
Series I. Your Creative Power
Box 1 Your Creative Power, circa 1948; includes work files, chapter 1-25
Box 1 Your Creative Power, circa 1948; includes work files, chapter 26-39
Box 2 Your Creative Power, circa 1948; includes work files, chapter 40-41

Series II. Wake Up Your Mind, circa 1952
Box 4 Wake Up Your Mind, circa 1952; includes work files, chapter 1-7
Box 5 Wake Up Your Mind, circa 1952; includes work files, chapter 8-18
Box 6 Wake Up Your Mind, circa 1952; includes work files, chapter 19-26
Box 7 Wake Up Your Mind, circa 1952; includes original manuscript

Series III. Applied Imagination, circa 1957
Box 7 Applied Imagination, 1958; includes revision
Box 8 Applied Imagination, 1958; includes work files, chapter 1-32
Box 9 Applied Imagination, 1958; includes work files, chapter 22-24, and original manuscript
Box 10 Applied Imagination, 1963; includes revision 1963

Series IV. Creative Education Foundation circa 1949-1964
Box 11 Creative Education Movement, circa 1963
Box 12 Patentable Ideas, correspondence, circa 1949-1951
Box 12 Patentable Ideas, correspondence, circa 1949-1951
Box 12 Non--Patentable Ideas, correspondence, circa 1949-1951
Box 13 Creative Education Foundation: Reports and Publications,
circa 1953-1964

Series V. Creative Education Foundation Correspondence circa 1963-1964
Arranged alphabetically
Box 14 Correspondence, D-E (A-C missing)
Box 15 Correspondence, F-G
Box 16 Correspondence, H
Box 17 Correspondence, J-K
Box 18 Correspondence, L (M-R missing)
Box 19 Correspondence, S-T
Box 20 Correspondence, U-Z

Series Vi. Books by Alex Osborn, undated
Box 21 Translation of Alex Osborn’s Books, undated
Box 22 How to Think Up, undated
Box 22 Your Creative Power, undated
Box 22 Wake Up Your Mind, undated
Box 22 Applied Imagination, undated
Box 22 The Creative Education Movement, undated
Box 22 Source Book for Creative Thinking, undated

Connecting the Dots by Dr. Jo Yudess

Since I started on the journey of creativity “back in the old days,” I’ve been thinking about novel and useful for more than thirty years. At the time I graduated from the Master’s program, the degree was an MS in Creative Studies and ____ (whatever your other work or passion was.) My degree was in Creative Studies and Personnel Administration. People often wondered how the two connected. I could hammer them for hours about the need for new ideas, good interpersonal skills, a facilitative approach, tolerance for error and ambiguity, etc.; but it was when I could help them solve problems in the workplace they began to take notice.

My next foray into education recently resulted in an Ed. D. in Executive Leadership from St. John Fisher College in Rochester and a dissertation entitled, “Strategies, efficacies and synergies of teaching creativity and leadership together: A grounded theory.” Again I was questioned about the connections, but for me, and I expect others who study these areas, it was more like a blinding flash of the obvious. In the beginning I was warned that creativity was not a serious subject and that I would have to treat it as something that had not been proven. I explained that I “drank the Kool-Aid” over thirty years ago and I could still taste it. When the dissertation was done, with connections to masses of excellent references on creativity, they took it very seriously.

As I think about our programs and the studies I’ve done, it occurs to me that those connections are almost a definition of what we think about creativity. Everything connects. We even teach “forced connctions” between seemingly unrelated items as a way of stimulating new and different ideas. Students from many fields find that studying creativity helps them relate to their job or major subject better. Some students want to use the degree to get a job in creativity the way you might use a degree in engineering to get an engineering position. I’ve had jobs in secondary education, higher education, consulting, editing, not-for-profit, human services, retail, manufacturing mangement, production, and human resources. They were all jobs in creativity. It’s about thinking. It’s about connecting. What do you do with what you have? How do you inspire others to do the necessary work? How do you facilitate problem solving so that everyone involved feels energized, committed, and proprietary about the solutions? How do you work with people, places, materials, circumstances, time frames, issues, and processes for a successful product or outcome? It’s all in the connections.

Presentation at the Creative Problem Solving Institute

Can you be deliberately intuitive? Before answering, remember that years ago a similar question was debated as to the possibility of being deliberately creative! As we deepen our understanding of creative thinking and intuition, a new question emerges: How might we bring a more holistic approach to CPS?

ICSC faculty member Cyndi Burnett and ICSC graduate Janice Francisco will explore these questions at this year's Creative Problem Solving Institute (CPSI) from June 21st-June 25th at the Adam's Mark Hotel in Buffalo, NY. CPSI is the oldest and longest running conference dedicated to the teaching of creative thinking skills. Cyndi and Janice will be leading a 90 minute, 3 hour, and day and a half post conference session over the course of the week. We hope to see you there!