  Design creativity, the originality and practicality of a solution concept is
critical for the success of many software projects. However, little research
has investigated the relationship between the way desiderata are presented and
design creativity. This study therefore investigates the impact of presenting
desiderata as ideas, requirements or prioritized requirements on design
creativity. Two between-subjects randomized controlled experiments were
conducted with 42 and 34 participants. Participants were asked to create design
concepts from a list of desiderata. Participants who received desiderata framed
as requirements or prioritized requirements created designs that are, on
average, less original but more practical than the designs created by
participants who received desiderata framed as ideas. This suggests that more
formal, structured presentations of desiderata are less appropriate where a
creative solution is desired. The results also show that design performance is
highly susceptible to minor changes in the vernacular used to communicate
desiderata.
