Ms Aisha Abdullah Buhussain, a researcher in the Gifted Education Department at the College of Graduate Studies (CGS) at the Arabian Gulf University (AGU), conducted a study on the dimensions of imagination and their correlation with creative problem-solving among academically and performance-gifted students. This study was part of her pursuit of a Master’s degree in gifted education.
Her research aimed to assess the predictive capability of imagination in facilitating creative problem-solving, specifically in terms of fluency and originality, among gifted secondary stage students in Bahrain. Ms Buhussain also sought to understand how imagination and creative problem-solving abilities varied based on talent classification (academic or performance) and gender.
The study utilised descriptive, correlational, and causal-comparative methodologies to analyse the data and make recommendations for enhancing imagination and creative problem-solving skills among gifted students, with a focus on boys’ schools.
The sample for the study included 167 gifted students from the Gifted Care Centre in Bahrain, comprising 76 academically gifted students (54 females, 22 males) and 91 performatively gifted students (67 females, 24 males). Various scales were used to measure imaginative abilities and creative problem-solving skills among the participants.
The findings indicated that creative imagination significantly predicted fluency and originality in problem-solving among gifted students. Moreover, there were differences in imaginative abilities and creative problem-solving skills favouring female gifted students, while no significant differences were observed based on talent classification.
In light of these results, the researcher recommended tailored programmes for different categories of gifted students to nurture their talents and enhance their imaginative and problem-solving skills. She emphasised the importance of incorporating imaginative stimuli into teaching practices and developing training programmes specifically aimed at improving the imaginative capacity and creative problem-solving skills of gifted students, particularly boys in Bahrain.
Prof. Abedalnasser Diyab Aljarrah, Learning and Teaching Psychology Professor at AGU, served as the primary supervisor for the research, with Prof. Fatema Ahmed Al Jasim, Gifted and Thinking Education Professor at AGU, as a co-supervisor.
