Short answer

Leverage historical and cultural imagery for initial brainstorming and divergent thinking, and incorporate natural imagery when focusing on the novelty and aesthetic qualities of the final product.

Field: Innovation & Design
Source: Frontiers in Communication (2025)
Method: Experimental study
Sample: 66 participants
Evidence: Moderate effect

The type of visual inspiration used significantly influences different stages of the creative design process for cultural tourism products. This innovation & design research insight is drawn from a 2025 study published in Frontiers in Communication. Using Experimental study with 66 participants, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Leverage historical and cultural imagery for initial brainstorming and divergent thinking, and incorporate natural imagery when focusing on the novelty and aesthetic qualities of the final product.

Study

Innovation & DesignNew This WeekModerate effect

Historical and cultural imagery boosts divergent thinking in early design stages, while natural imagery enhances novelty and aesthetics in final designs.

The type of visual inspiration used significantly influences different stages of the creative design process for cultural tourism products.

Frontiers in Communication · 2025

Key Findings

01Historical site samples positively impacted fluency in the idea generation stage.
02Local culture samples positively impacted flexibility in the idea generation stage.
03Natural landscape samples positively impacted novelty and aesthetic appeal in the final design performance stage.

Application

Design takeaway

Leverage historical and cultural imagery for initial brainstorming and divergent thinking, and incorporate natural imagery when focusing on the novelty and aesthetic qualities of the final product.

How to apply

When developing new cultural tourism products, use mood boards featuring historical artifacts or local traditions for initial concept generation, and then introduce natural landscapes or scenic views when refining the product's visual identity and unique selling propositions.

Project actions

01When you're brainstorming, try using images related to the history or culture of your product's theme.
02When you're refining your design and focusing on how it looks, consider using images of natural beauty or landscapes.

Method & Evidence

AimTo investigate how different types of image samples (historical site, local culture, natural landscape) influence creative performance at various stages of cultural tourism product design.

MethodExperimental study

Procedure66 design students were randomly assigned to three groups. Each group received a different category of image samples (historical site, local culture, or natural landscape) and was tasked with designing a cultural tourism product. Creativity was assessed across three stages: idea generation (divergent thinking), idea aggregation (convergent thinking), and final design performance (overall creativity).

Sample66 participants

ContextCultural tourism product design

Variables

IV["Type of image sample (historical site, local culture, natural landscape)"]

DV["Fluency (idea generation)","Flexibility (idea generation)","Adaptability (idea aggregation)","Feasibility (idea aggregation)","Novelty (final design)","Aesthetic appeal (final design)","Practicality (final design)"]

CV["Participant group assignment","Task (designing a cultural tourism product)"]

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Random assignment of participants to groups.
+Assessment of creativity across multiple stages of the design process.

Limitations

The study used a limited sample size and may not represent all types of cultural tourism products or design contexts.

Reliability & validity

The study's validity is supported by the controlled experimental design and the multi-stage assessment of creativity. Reliability could be enhanced by using multiple raters for the creativity indicators.

Think critically

How might the cultural context of the 'historical site' or 'local culture' imagery itself influence the creative outcomes, beyond just being 'historical' or 'cultural'?

Design Principles

"Stage-specific inspiration sourcing optimizes creative output."

Understanding how different visual stimuli impact creativity allows designers to strategically select inspiration sources to optimize idea generation, refinement, and final output. This is crucial for developing innovative and culturally resonant tourism products.

What This Means for Your Design

Different pictures help you think in different ways when you're designing. Old buildings and local traditions help you come up with lots of ideas at first, while pictures of nature help make your final design look new and attractive.

How to use in your project

1.Reference this study when explaining how your choice of visual inspiration influenced your idea generation or final design outcomes.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

The selection of visual inspiration is critical in design projects. Research by Wei et al. (2025) indicates that historical and cultural imagery can enhance divergent thinking during the initial idea generation phase, while natural imagery is more effective in improving the novelty and aesthetic appeal of final designs for cultural tourism products. This suggests that designers should strategically choose their visual stimuli based on the specific stage of the design process and the desired creative outcome.

Source

Frontiers in Communication

Differentiated impacts of image samples on creative performance in cultural tourism product design

journal · 2025

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about historical and cultural imagery boosts divergent thinking in early design stages, while natural imagery enhances novelty and aesthetics in final designs?: Leverage historical and cultural imagery for initial brainstorming and divergent thinking, and incorporate natural imagery when focusing on the novelty and aesthetic qualities of the final product. Evidence: Frontiers in Communication (2025).
Why does "Historical and cultural imagery boosts divergent thinking in early design stages, while natural imagery enhances novelty and aesthetics in final designs." matter for design?: Understanding how different visual stimuli impact creativity allows designers to strategically select inspiration sources to optimize idea generation, refinement, and final output. This is crucial for developing innovative and culturally resonant tourism products.
How can designers apply this research?: Leverage historical and cultural imagery for initial brainstorming and divergent thinking, and incorporate natural imagery when focusing on the novelty and aesthetic qualities of the final product.
What were the main findings?: Historical site samples positively impacted fluency in the idea generation stage.. Local culture samples positively impacted flexibility in the idea generation stage.. Natural landscape samples positively impacted novelty and aesthetic appeal in the final design performance stage.
What research method was used?: Experimental study with 66 participants.
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2025 journal from Frontiers in Communication.
What should I do differently in my next project?: When developing new cultural tourism products, use mood boards featuring historical artifacts or local traditions for initial concept generation, and then introduce natural landscapes or scenic views when refining the product's visual identity and unique selling propositions.
What are the limitations?: The study focused on design students, and findings may differ for experienced professionals. The specific cultural context of the tourism products was not deeply explored.