ABSTRACT
This chapter explores connections between group creativity and product creativity. It identifies several parallels between group creativity and historical change in product domains, based on the nature of mediated action in both. In group creativity-synchronically mediated action-interaction between creating agents is immediate, durationally constrained to the moment of creation, and is mediated by linguistic or musical signs. Sociocultural psychologists draw on the symbolic interactionist tradition in their focus on actions or events as the basic units of analysis. Sociocultural theorists have also drawn on semiotics, sociolinguistics, and the writings of Vygotsky. Harrington's focus on creative ecosystems and interpersonal influences is compatible with the characteristic of group creativity; but his discussion focused on the longer term, diachronic interaction characteristic of scientific and artistic creativity. The representation of group creativity as mediated action displays interesting parallels with recent creativity theories, known variously as systems or ecological theories, which focus on the sociointeractional aspects of the creative process.
