Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories

Mid-day Extra: Are cheaters more creative?

A new study suggests that creative-minded people might also be more likely to cheat — and find a good reason for it after the fact.

So we’re all taught from a young age that cheating is wrong. And in school, and in the workplace, creativity is considered a good thing — and it’s rewarded. But according to a new study, creative people are also more likely to cheat.

In today’s Mid-day Extra, we ask: can creativity cause harm in the workplace?

Francesca Gino worked on the study, and she’s a professor at Harvard Business School. She joins us from Cambridge, Mass. to explain why inspired the idea.

According to her, the research was in part inspired by media coverage of famous cheaters like Bernie Madoff, and how they were often described as “evil geniuses.” It turns out, even controlling for intelligence, people that are more creative are more likely to cheat… or, in her words, be “morally flexible.”

Related Topics

Collections:

Tagged as:

Latest Episodes

View All Shows
  • Marketplace Tech
    36 minutes ago
    11:03
  • Marketplace
    12 hours ago
    25:19
  • Make Me Smart
    18 hours ago
    19:00
  • Marketplace Morning Report
    20 hours ago
    6:55
  • This Is Uncomfortable
    3 days ago
    56:05
  • Million Bazillion
    24 days ago
    32:45