Investigation of the Effects of Creative Imagination on Academic Outcomes in Design Programs

Imagination as the key to the creative process is one of the key components of design education that affects students' problem-solving skills and innovation. The purpose of this research is to determine the impact of creative imagination on the academic performance of students enrolled in design courses. It intends to obtain a measure of the way creative imagination affects or influences students’ performance as well as their achievements. However, there is a lack of understanding regarding the correlation between creativity and performance among university students. The study collected data on creative imagination and academic performance through a survey of 350 participants drawn from five universities. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 350 participants, of which 320 were 176 males and 144 females. The research included quantitative techniques such as linear regression, correlation analysis, and structural equation modeling-partial least squares (SEM-PLS). Further, the result of the analysis showed that imagination level has the most significant impact on academic outcomes in design programs with a strong positive effect (β=0.35, p-value = 0.04). Higher creative imagination scores had a positive correlation with grades and students' involvement. This underscores the importance of forecasting to enhance students’ performance and engagement in design programs. The strategies used in education should be utilized to supplement creativity to raise the performance and satisfaction of students.