Despite substantial interest in developing theoretical models and technology for creativity enhancement, existing creativity research across various fields lacks a user-centered definition of creativity that can be operationalized in today’s digital spaces. To address this, we conducted a mixed-methods longitudinal research on a study website mirroring content from Bēhance, a popular online platform for creatives. Specifically, we examined how content creators and consumers explored and reflected on online creative content through textual, visual, quantitative, and behavioral data. Analyzing and triangulating these multiple data streams, we conceptualize creativity from the perspectives of its genuine “users,” the viewers. Collectively, we highlight (1) constructs of creativity that have not been emphasized in the existing literature, (2) the impact of users’ roles on content exploration and conception of creativity, and (3) the difference between machine and human users’ perception of creative content. We discuss theoretical and practical implications accordingly.

中文翻译：

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在旁观者的眼中：在线视觉创造力的观众定义概念

尽管对开发提高创造力的理论模型和技术有着浓厚的兴趣，但现有的跨领域创造力研究缺乏以用户为中心的创造力定义，可以在当今的数字空间中实施。为了解决这个问题，我们对一个研究网站进行了混合方法纵向研究，该研究网站反映了流行的创意在线平台 Bēhance 的内容。具体来说，我们研究了内容创建者和消费者如何通过文本、视觉、定量和行为数据探索和反映在线创意内容。通过分析和三角测量这些多个数据流，我们从真正的“用户”即观众的角度来概念化创造力。总的来说，我们强调（1）现有文献中没有强调的创造力结构，（2）用户角色对内容探索和创意概念的影响，（3）机器和人类用户对创意内容感知的差异。我们相应地讨论了理论和实践意义。