Where you end and I begin: Understanding intimate co-creation

Creative work is a social process that requires effective collaboration between individuals. Accordingly, theories account for the ways that creativity takes place in teams and groups and the role that social networks play in shaping creativity. However, scholars have largely overlooked the role that dyads play in creative work within organizations. The purpose of this paper is to build theory on how intimate co-creation occurs and how it influences the generation of creative ideas over time. I theorize that, as people create together, they engage in intimate creative interactions, which, under certain circumstances, lead to the development of a shared interpersonal boundary (i.e., a sense of “we”). This shared interpersonal boundary influences creativity by circumscribing a closed, safe space in which the dyad can explore divergent ideas and manage the paradoxes of creativity; it also enables shared scripts and schemas that help the dyad move through creative blocks. By integrating theories of intimate i...