People are inherently biased against creative ideas

Physorg.com reports on a study to be published in Psychological Science that suggests people are inherently biased against creative ideas. If true, this could have rather significant implications for how we conduct the peer review and practice of science.

According to Physorg.com, the study finds:

• Creative ideas are by definition novel, and novelty can trigger feelings of uncertainty that make most people uncomfortable.

• People dismiss creative ideas in favor of ideas that are purely practical -- tried and true.

• Objective evidence shoring up the validity of a creative proposal does not motivate people to accept it.

• Anti-creativity bias is so subtle that people are unaware of it, which can interfere with their ability to recognize a creative idea.