Publications

May 2018
Article

The Downside of Downtime: The Prevalence and Work Pacing Consequences of Idle Time at Work

By: Andrew Brodsky and Teresa M. Amabile

Although both media commentary and academic research have focused much attention on the dilemma of employees being too busy, this paper presents evidence of the opposite phenomenon, in which employees do not have enough work to fill their time and are left with hours... View Details

Keywords: Employees; Working Conditions; Performance Consistency; Performance Productivity

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March 2012
Article

Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Creativity

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Julianna Pillemer

Scholars began serious study into the social psychology of creativity about 25 years after the field of creativity research had taken root. Over the past 35 years, examination of social and environmental influences on creativity has become increasingly vigorous, with... View Details

Keywords: Social Psychology; Creativity; Performance

January 2003 (Revised June 2007)
Case

Satera Team at Imatron Systems, Inc. The, (B)

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Elizabeth Schatzel

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

August 2000
Case

Alison Brown of Compass Records

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Amy Blitz

Highly acclaimed recording artist, banjo player, and jazz/blue grass composer Alison Brown has used her artistic experience and MBA-based business savvy to found a successful independent record company with bassist/husband Garry West. Representing a stellar roster of... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Industry Structures; Service Delivery; Business Strategy; Expansion; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Music Industry

August 1999 (Revised May 2000)
Case

E Ink

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Susan Archambault

E Ink is a high-technology start-up attempting to revolutionize print communication through electronic ink displays. The founders and top managers of this two-year-old firm are striving to translate a technological breakthrough into a working prototype, move from... View Details

Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Industry Structures; Organizational Structure; Commercialization; Technology; Information Technology Industry

March 1999 (Revised February 2000)
Case

Ken Hakuta: AllHerb.com

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Nicole Tempest

Ken Hakuta had been an entrepreneur all his life. Having started a number of consumer-oriented ventures, he became well-known as "Dr. Fad," the initiator of the "Wacky Wallwalker" toy craze in the 1980s. Wishing to strike out in an exciting new direction in 1998, he... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Health; Information Publishing; Leadership Style; Problems and Challenges; Web Sites

March 1997 (Revised March 1997)
Case

Business Teams at Rubbermaid, Inc.

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Dean Whitney

Rubbermaid, a consumer-products company widely praised for its innovation, has instituted a company-wide experiment to stimulate innovation even further. The experiment consists of creating small cross-functional business teams within each division, with each team... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Innovation Strategy; Groups and Teams; Innovation and Management; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Consumer Products Industry; United States

13 May 2014
News

Inside Africa

“The tone most Americans bring to discussions of Africa is one of pity; pity for people who are poor and helpless,” says Teresa Clarke (MBA 1988, JD 1987, AB 1984). Clarke is working to change that: eliminating those preconceptions View Details

Keywords: Constantine von Hoffman

July 2000 (Revised August 2000)
Case

AllHerb.com: Evolution of an E-tailer

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Christina L. Darwall

Serial entrepreneur Ken Hakuta, in the second year of his latest venture, reconsiders his original strategy of maintaining an independent, self-funded, self-led company. His Internet herbal remedy company, AllHerb.com, has already enjoyed considerable success with its... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Strategic Planning; Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Web Services Industry

01 Oct 2003
Conference Presentation

The Best (and Worst) Days in Creative Project Teams: Some Preliminary Results

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Steve J. Kramer

Keywords: Creativity; Groups and Teams; Outcome or Result

01 Oct 1997
Conference Presentation

Rewards and Creativity

By: B. A. Hennessey and Teresa M. Amabile

Keywords: Creativity

1 Apr 1984
Conference Presentation

The Effect of Reward and Task Label on Children's Verbal Creativity

By: Beth A. Hennessey and Teresa M. Amabile

Keywords: Creativity; Spoken Communication; Motivation and Incentives

Article

When the Thought Doesn’t Count: The Dynamics of Unhelpful Help in Creative Organizations

By: Colin Fisher, Julianna Pillemer and Teresa Amabile

We’ve all been there. You ask a colleague for help with something, maybe a tricky research design or a difficult student. They agree to help, but their assistance misses its mark. You wonder what happened and, if you turn to existing research and theory, you don’t find... View Details

Keywords: Helping; Organizational Culture

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winter 2009
Article

Creativity, Improvisation, and Organizations

By: Colin M. Fisher and Teresa M. Amabile

'Improvisational creativity' involves simultaneously identifying new challenges and generating responses, with little or no time to prepare. View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Organizational Culture; Creativity; Theory; Performance

1 Apr 1987
Conference Presentation

Immunizing Children Against the Negative Effects of Reward

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Beth A. Hennessey

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives

01 Nov 1979
Conference Presentation

Exploring the Relationship Between Fantasy and Creativity

By: M. L. Stubbs and Teresa M. Amabile

Keywords: Creativity

01 Sep 1979
Conference Presentation

A Researcher Visits the Teacher's Lounge

By: Teresa M. Amabile and M. W. Watson

Keywords: Research; Teaching

2010
Article

Creativity

By: Beth A. Hennessey and Teresa M. Amabile

The psychological study of creativity is essential to human progress. If strides are to be made in the sciences, humanities, and arts, we must arrive at a far more detailed understanding of the creative process, its antecedents, and its inhibitors. This review,... View Details

Keywords: Creative Ability; Creativity; Social Psychology; Research; Interdisciplinary Studies

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