A socio-cultural analysis of creativity in capitalism : a case study of an advertising agency in Hong Kong

Abstract

This dissertation studies creativity in capitalism from a critical socio-cultural perspective. It draws upon and re-interprets the insights of such masters of modern sociological thoughts as Weber and Marx, and, based on empirical field data, analyses the tension between capitalism and creativity and the potential in the former for the latter. The research, based on field research lasting over six months in a respected advertising agency in Hong Kong, studies the culture and the social process occurring in a specific organizational context. Participant observation and interviews are the major methods employed for this study. The aim of the study is to find out how certain prerequisites of a capitalist organization can intimidate the functioning and the development of creativity and how certain practices, at an operational and organizational level, are at work to counteract the pressures generated by capitalism. Key findings suggest that creativity is difficult but possible in a capitalist context. The possibility is very much dependent on the role taken by the leaders. The notion of charisma, coined by Max Weber, helps explain the importance of leadership in resolving the constant tensions generated from the dynamics between profit, efficiency and creativity. Furthermore, it is found that the charismatic leadership is an active, flexible and high-energy platform for organizing creativity and inducing change in a capitalist organization.