Test of creative imagery abilities

Boris Forthmann

The manual of the TCIA is highly usable for both researchers and practitioners. The required testing conditions are well described and clear with respect to many details. The scoring guide is outlined in a way that facilitates scoring even by novice users of the test (e.g., practitioners who want to measure creative imagery ability). […] The most important feature of the manual to make the scoring work is a chapter with worked examples on how to score TCIA responses of varying quality. Hence, the complete process from preparing the test administration to scoring of the responses is well documented by the authors. […] In a nutshell, the TCIA in its current form provides a theoretically and psychometrically sound measure of creative mental imagery abilities that comes along with a highly usable manual for researchers and measurement practitioners.

 

Richard W. Hass

This is a very well researched, easy to read and understand manual. One might even call it a companion piece since the sections on visual imagery are very comprehensive and stand on their own as an excellent reframing of how to conceptualize and define how creative mental imagery should work. Within the first few pages, it is clear that a test like this, that doesn’t rely solely on the kinds of verbal problems that other creativity tests have is an important contribution to research. Additionally, while some of the older creativity test batteries have imagery or “figural” components, this tool connects the tool with newer approaches to visual cognition which render the test scores more interpretable, and greatly enhance efforts to validate the instrument via construct validity.