Creativity and morality are two key attributes that organizations demand of their employees, and stakeholders of organizations. Yet under certain circumstances, these attributes may inhibit each other. In a study with far-reaching implications for business, education, and society, John Coombes of HKUST and colleagues from PolyU explore ways of tailoring curriculum design to nurture leaders who are both creative and moral.

Business schools worldwide seek to promote morality and creativity as learning outcomes for their students. However, challenges remain. “They are still often integrated into business school curricula and training programs in a relatively discrete and disjointed manner,” the researchers warn.

Furthermore, these two attributes have a complicated relationship. Creativity has been associated with a tendency to be unconventional, individualistic, and egoistic, all of which may encourage individuals to push the boundaries of morality to serve their own interests. “However,” the researchers add, “creativity has also been associated with the cognitive flexibility and imagination that are necessary for high-level moral reasoning.”

To explore how to tailor training to cultivate both attributes, the researchers examined the complex relationship between creativity and moral reasoning with data collected from a group of undergraduate students. They found that perspective-taking—“the tendency or ability to see things from another person’s viewpoint as if one is ‘in the shoes’ of the other person”—was an important moderator of this relationship, especially for highly creative individuals.

These novel insights will help to shape curriculum design to cultivate more moral and creative business leaders. “It may be time to elevate the positioning of perspective taking explicitly in our education and training programs,” the researchers note, “so that creativity, morality, and other critical attributes can be developed effectively.” This might include encouraging students to consider the reasons for other people’s decisions and behaviors and imagine being in others’ situations.