Hiring people with international living experience may become a priority in future creative workplaces. According to recent psychology research reported in The Economist, people who have lived abroad are better problem-solvers than those who have never lived anywhere but in the USA.

[Researchers] presented 155 American business students and 55 foreign ones studying in America with a test used by psychologists as a measure of creativity. Given a candle, some matches and a box of drawing pins, the students were asked to attach the candle to a cardboard wall so that no wax would drip on the floor when the candle was lit. (The solution is to use the box as a candleholder and fix it to the wall with the pins.) They found 60% of students who were either living abroad or had spent some time doing so, solved the problem, whereas only 42% of those who had not lived abroad did so.

A follow-up study with 72 Americans and 36 foreigners explored their creative negotiating skills…. where both negotiators had lived abroad 70% struck a deal …. When neither of the negotiators had lived abroad, none was able to reach a deal.

Just having traveled abroad was apparently not enough to improve a person’s likelihood of solving the problems. Also, the researchers claim they found a way to filter out factors like the possibility that better problem-solvers are the ones more willing to live abroad.

As creative talent remains in short supply, improving the problem-solving skills of employees will be a priority at many companies. If further research in this area continues to support the findings, we may see employers who need a creative workforce – with top problem-solving skills – seeking to hire people with experience living abroad (which, of course, includes immigrants who by definition have done so). A global firm may even offer to give people that experience early in their careers, stationing people outside their home countries.

Or, as another recent Economist article reports, right now some companies are offering jobs to people – next year. What if they helped them to live and volunteer abroad in the meantime? Perhaps paying a small stipend. They’d score the double bonus of securing talent for when the economy rebounds and improving the problem solving skills of that talent.

Have you lived abroad? Do you think it improved your problem-solving skills?