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expression of creativity by separate components, which was revealed in the course of the
research performance, e.g. school-age boys have strongly expressed idea-generating and
originality, whereas girls - idea - specifying and completeness (Petrulyte, 2007). Thus, when
estimating the expression of creativity components with regard to gender aspects, we can
not make unambiguous conclusions, neither interpret the results of other researches as fully
complying with (or not complying) the results of our research.
When comparing the estimates of personality traits by the year of studies, our research has
identified that the estimates of senior students (the third and the fourth year) are
significantly higher in terms of statistics in the sub scales of extraversion and openness to
experience, compared to the estimates of junior students (the first and the second
year). This data coincides with the data of other researchers (Weisberg et al., 2011), which
shows that the expression of personality traits is impacted by age. J. Rantanen et al. (2007)
also asserts that the average estimates of extraversion and openness to experience increase
when a person gets older. However, our research results showing that agreeableness and
conscientiousness / integrity are higher in junior students (the first and the second year) do
not coincide with the research outcomes of J. Rantanen et al. (2007) who states that
agreeableness and conscientiousness / integrity increase when a person gets older.
When comparing the expression of creativity components in students of different years of
study it was found out that the estimates of the fourth year students in the sub scales of
intuition, seeking innovation, flexibility and inversiveness are significantly higher in terms of
statistics compared to the estimates of the first, the second and the third year students;
moreover, statistically significant differences were not identified when comparing the
results of the first year students with the second and the third year students, as well as
comparing the results of the third and the fourth year students. The obtained results are
favourable with regard to the opportunities of creativity development / self-development
and they also contribute to the discussion whether creativity is innate and/or acquired,
what age is the best age for creativity dissemination and a creative product creation.
According to humanistic psychology (Rogers, Maslow), creativity is inherent in all of us,
whereas the most favourable age for creativity revelation and cultivation is young adult life
(quoted by Grakauskaitė-Karkockiene, 2006, 2010). The increase in the creativity expression
estimate of our research participants - senior students of Lithuanian higher schools - is in
line with these scientific findings. The obtained results show that it is necessary to foster the
students' (beginning with the first year of study) creative thinking in the process of studies
when involving them in various activities, project work, problem-solving, etc., which would
develop creative imagination, divergent and critical thinking and encourage them to search
for solutions using new, original and unconventional ways. Thus, creativity development /
self-development in higher schools is of major importance since the first days of studies.
Despite the fact that there are a large number of researches, which analyse personality
traits of students and their expression, there is a lack of researches, which would analyse
personality traits of students who do not work while studying and those who align their
studies with work. When comparing personality traits of students who do not work while
studying and those who align their studies with work, the research found out that students
who align their studies with work are more extroverted and open to experience than
students who do not work while studying. Presumably, a higher level of extraversion and
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