Creative Thinking Abilities as Predictors of Education for Sustainable Development among University Students

Creative Thinking Abilities as Predictors of Education for Sustainable Development among University Students | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Creative Thinking Abilities as Predictors of Education for Sustainable Development among University Students Inuusah Mahama, Bernard Mensah Amoako, Jane Edjah Odurowaa, Kyeremeh Tawiah Dabone, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9303109/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examined the influence of creative thinking on education for sustainable development among students in selected Technical Universities in Ghana. Using a survey design, data were collected from 549 students through stratified sampling. Creative thinking was measured with Tam et al. (2013) creative thinking abilities scale while education for sustainable development was measured with ESDS-20 (Edjah et al., Under Review). The data were analysed with descriptive statistics and covariance-based structural equation modelling. The study revealed that creative thinking predicted education for sustainable development significantly and positively. In this regard, creative thinking is seen as an important educational resource for strengthening sustainable development learning of students in higher education. Therefore, the study recommends that technical universities in Ghana embed creativity-focused and sustainability-oriented learning tasks into core courses of their programmes and lecturer training so that students can develop the capacities needed for responsible action and future-oriented problem solving. creative thinking education for sustainable development higher education structural equation modelling technical universities Ghana Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Introduction Sustainable development (SD) refers to actions that lead to satisfying the needs of today while preparing the way for satisfying the needs of future generations (Borowy, 2013 ). SD anchors on social, environmental and economic and its values must be indoctrinated among people from their formative years (Purvis et al., 2019 ). In contemporary higher education settings, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is seen as an important framework in developing skills, values, and dispositions that students require to mitigate environmental, social, and economic challenges they encounter (Chasokela, 2024 ; Mokski et al., 2023 ). ESD represents the transformative educational approach that prepares learners for sustainable futures through informed decision-making, responsible action, and participation (Kaushal, 2025 ). Current literature indicates that education for sustainable development (ESD) has the potential to enhance students’ academic achievement, increase their motivation and involvement, and develop their ability to solve challenges associated with creating a sustainable society. However, the limited resources and poor teacher preparation render the implementation of ESD programmes ineffective within higher educational institutions (Bonilla-Jurado et al., 2024 ; MuhammedZein & Abdullateef, 2025 ). Within this broader ESD conversation, creativity emerges as more than an optional enrichment; it appears as a central educational resource for imagining alternatives to unsustainable routines and for generating meaningful responses to contemporary challenges. Sandri ( 2013 ) argues that creativity, innovation, and divergent thinking have not featured strongly enough in higher education literature on education for sustainability, despite their importance for helping learners envision and implement alternatives to the status quo. In Sandri’s formulation, creativity is not peripheral to sustainability learning but an essential part of it, especially when universities aim to cultivate graduates who can think beyond repetition and engage uncertainty productively. This argument is reinforced by Cheng ( 2018 ), who observes that the integration of creativity and environmental sustainability remains under-researched, even though creativity appears to support pro-environmental competencies and sustainable practice. Creative thinking is a decisive construct for improving sustainability practices because it espouses sustainability dimensions in the process of creativity (Awan et al., 2023 ). The development of sustainability principes in education must be innately transformative on the students. Hence, nurturing in ESD concepts must transform learners’ systems and aptitudes sustainable practices (Rieckmann, 2025 ). Creativity is placed at the forefront of ESD conversations (Haim & Aschauer, 2024 ; Robertson et al., 2025 ). In this regard, creativity is viewed as the central manifestation of the collective imagination for developing alternative ways of living and responding to challenges while also representing one of the many resources available to ESD as educators work toward achieving alternatives for sustainable practices. Creativity, innovation, and divergent thinking are described by Sandri ( 2013 ) as underrepresented in the literature of education for sustainability development in higher education. However, when considering Sandri's statement, creativity must be viewed as an integral aspect of the learning process for achieving education for sustainability (Ansari, 2025 ; Cheng, 2018 ). Furthermore, Cheng ( 2018 ) indicated that the integration of creativity and environmental sustainability is an area that requires further exploration; hitherto, they alleged that creativity enables friendly-environmental behaviours and sustainable practices among students. Likewise, Saleh and Brem ( 2023 ) indicated that creativity seen to be consolidating the process of realising sustainable development and not only supports people in adjusting to uncertainty. This implies that creative thinking, producing different solutions, and accepting diverse viewpoints are critical determinants for realising SDGs. According to Mróz et al. ( 2025 , p. 2), ‘a lot of evidence from more recent empirical and policy studies further clarifies how creativity links with sustainable development’. In the view of Kanzola and Petrakis ( 2021 ), creativity dwells in people’s social identity, where social and environmental (e.g., health, maturity, a positive attitude towards cultural change, social stability, environmental care, and material and non-material incentives) shape their creative potentials. This implies that creative behaviours in people can be exhibited when their social and cultural conditions are favourable, and these could lead them towards pro-sustainability actions (Mróz et al., 2025 ). In present-day, alongside socioeconomic and ecological problem, the human race is threatened by climate change, resource degradation, and economic recessions (Koundouri et al., 2024 ). In alleviating these challenges, creativity appears to be the antidote. According to Mróz and Ocetkiewicz ( 2024 ), creativity is the most appropriate procedure that will enable sustainable practices in solving these challenges. Creativity is an act of conceptualising, realising, and thought processes that can lead to the creation of new ways for solving contemporary problems (Haim & Aschauer, 2024 ; Singh & Chakrabarti, 2025 ). Aside from the above, extant studies have shown an increasing link between the role of pedagogical approaches for fostering creativity and accomplishing sustainable development goals. In one such study by Li et al. ( 2022 ), they found that creative thinking teaching methods positively influenced students’ learning outcomes, creative problem-solving abilities, critical thinking abilities, and level of involvement in studying vocational related courses. Correspondingly, Oskina and Darinskaia ( 2023 ) demonstrated that ESD issues could be used as prompts for creative tasks through creativity-based e-learning, as the experimental group showed adequate positive behaviours toward the learning environment and regard it as an avenue for developing creative abilities. Taken together, the studies imply that when educators intentionally design curriculum around the practice of creativity, it will help students become actively engaged, adventurous, and innovative with the instructional materials that align with sustainable development. A related literature indicates that creativity contributes to sustainability learning by shaping how students understand, interpret, and apply knowledge. López et al. ( 2024 ), in their systematic review, conclude that creativity contributes to learning within sustainable and eco-social educational approaches in cross-cutting ways, including ideation, design, implementation, collaboration, reflection, imagination, experimentation, and interdisciplinary integration. Their review is especially useful because it moves the discussion beyond seeing creativity as a personality trait and instead frames it as something embedded in teaching strategies, classroom environments, and learning processes. This perspective is valuable for studies of university students because it suggests that the educational environment can either suppress or cultivate the creative capacities needed for sustainable thinking and action. Studies in higher-education settings point to the broader institutional importance of creativity. For instance, Salvador and Comunian ( 2024 ) argue that higher education plays a key role in the sustainable development of cultural and creative industries and note the growing demand for originality, creative solutions, and problem-solving capacities in skills-intensive work. Likewise, Osmani et al. ( 2022 ) further show that creativity positively influences entrepreneurial intention among university female graduates, underscoring that creativity has consequences not only for classroom learning but also for innovation, opportunity creation, and graduate futures. Although these studies are not direct measures of ESD outcomes, they strengthen the case that creativity is a strategic university-level capability with social and economic relevance, including relevance for sustainable development. Also, several studies confirm that ESD influences student attitudes and behaviours in higher education. For instance, Abdullahi et al. ( 2024 ) found a significant positive relationship between ESD and university students’ sustainability behaviour in Somalia, emphasizing the importance of integrating ESD into higher education curricula. Similarly, Mahlaole ( 2025 ) found that ESD significantly influenced attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control in relation to sustainable consumption behaviour among students. These findings important because they indicate that ESD is not only about awareness or curriculum rhetoric; it can shape how students think and act. It is important to note that the effectiveness of ESD depends heavily on pedagogy and educators’ capacities. MuhammedZein and Abdullateef ( 2025 ) report that constructivist, inquiry-based pedagogies promoted sustainable development education in Saudi universities. Hashim et al. ( 2023 ) found a significant positive relationship between teachers’ creativity and ESD pedagogical practices in TVET institutions, suggesting that creativity is not only a student outcome but also a teaching resource that influences how sustainability education is enacted. Taken together, these studies imply that any attempt to understand the influence of creativity on ESD among university students must attend both to student learning processes and to the educational practices that enable those processes. Problem Statement Creative thinking propels novelty, drives economic growth, and reduces systemic challenges in every human set-up (Haldar, 2025 ). Therefore, the relationship between creativity and ESD is critical for the global futures of nations and their people (Karakatsani & Pliogou, 2026 ). ESD must take into consideration the primary aspects of sustainable development: environmental, social and economic dimensions in every creative procedure (Huang et al., 2024 ). Creative thinking aids problem-solving, which in turn that drives sustainable behaviours towards humanity and the environment (Ansari, 2025 ; Chen & Chang, 2024 ). Importantly, creative thinking is a crucial driver for ESD and a key aspect of attaining the vision of SDG 2030 (Akinsemolu & Onyeaka, 2025 ; Howarth et al., 2025 ; Opoku et al., 2024 ). In the Ghanaian context, the value of creative thinking in the realm of ESD is less explored among higher education students (Boafo et al., 2025 ). In this regard, the current study tries to offer vital information as to how creative thinking could influence sustainable practices through ESD among students in selected Technical Universities in Ghana. This study timely and relevant because many universities are pushing resources into nurturing 21st century students that can take charge of the process of achieving the visions and missions of SDGs-2030. Nevertheless, the successes failures of such initiatives are less explored. Likewise, in the context of higher education, it is indispensable to know the importance assigned to sustainability practices among students, so as to mould them to become innovators and problem solvers of the world (Uzorka et al., 2025). Furthermore, with the many challenges that fraught ESD in this 21st century, levels of creativity and their relationship with ESD contribute enormously in the daily routine of people (Robertson et al., 2025 ). Therefore, revelations from this study could serve as a first of a kind and shift stakeholders’ attention towards educational curriculums that would lead developing creative behaviours in students, which would in turn lead to students’ exhibiting sustainable practices and behaviours. Based on the forgoing, the study addressed the following question: To what extent do creative thinking behaviours of students influence their ESD behaviours? Methods and Materials Participants’ Selection In this study, a survey was conducted to ascertain creative thinking behaviours as they influence ESD behaviours among selected Technical University students in Ghana. In all, 549 respondents were recruited through a stratified sampling procedure. The criteria were based on biological sex, level, and religious affiliation. The recruitment of the respondents was collaborative, with support from administrators and lecturers in the selected Technical Universities. With this, male respondents were 277 (50.5%) while female respondents were 271 (49.4%) and those who chose not to disclose was just one (.2%). Also, respondents affiliated to Christianity were 399 (72.7%) while those affiliated to Islam were 98 (17.9%), and African Traditional Religion were 52 (9.5%). Furthermore, level 100 respondents were 214 (39.0%), level 200 respondents were 180 (32.8%), level 300 respondents were 94 (17.1%), level 400 respondents were 55 (10.0%), level 500 respondents were 5 (.9%), and one (.2%) level 600 respondent. Instrumentation Two survey instruments were used to collect data from the respondents for the study. These instruments included the creative thinking scale and ESD scale. With the creative thinking scale, the Tam et al. (2013) students’ creative thinking skills was adopted. The scale had five dimensions: creative character (5-items, α = .792), resistance to premature closure (5-items, α = .754), originality (3-items, α.742), synthesizing (5-items, α = .753), and sensitivity (3-items, α = .605). The statements on the scale mirrored new and innovative ways students use to operate in their learning journey. The scale was scored based on a Likert-type with five-points from strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree = 5. The scale was subjected to confirmatory examination and the results showed acceptability of its use this study context. For example, the Comparative Fit Index (CFI = .979) and Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI = .972) both exceed the commonly recommended threshold of 0.90, indicating a good fit between the model and the data (Sathyanarayana & Mohanasundaram, 2024 ). Additionally, the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA = .052) is well below the .06 threshold, which suggests an excellent fit between the hypothesized model and the observed data (Yin et al., 2023 ). The Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR = .045) was also within the appropriate threshold of 0.08, further supporting the adequacy of the model’s fit (Holgado-Tello et al., 2026 ). In addition to the model fit, the convergent validity was established using Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and it recorded a value of .57, and this was within the comparative threshold (Fornell & Larcker, 1981 ). In terms of the internal consistency, it was established using Construct Reliability (CR) and this produced a value of .87 (Sureshchandar, 2023 ). Finally, all the items on scale loaded appropriately between .364 and .792 (Jöreskog et al., 2016 ). Together, these indices confirm that the model fits the data well and is suitable for further analysis (Sathyanarayana & Mohanasundaram, 2024 ). With ESD, the Education for Sustainable Development Scale (ESDS-20) was adopted from Edjah et al. (Under Review). The scale had three dimensions: systems thinking and future orientation (8-items, α = .868), sustainable action and community engagement (7-items, α = .852), and ethical values and social responsibility (5-items, α = 810). The items on the scale reflected the key areas of sustainability such as economic, social, and environmental. The scale was on a five-point Likert-type ranging from strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree = 5. The scale was contextually appropriate and its adoption did not demand further manipulations. As well, expert reviews were sought from three educational measurement and evaluation professionals for them to ascertain the content and face validity of the scale (Saw et al., 2025 ). Above all, the scale met the required threshold of internal consistency with a composite Cronbach’s alpha value of .921 (Izah et al., 2023 ). Data Analyses The data was analysed using both descriptive (means and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (CB-SEM). Before the analyses, the data screened for missing values and normality checks were performed. Specifically, data on research question one was analysed using means and standard deviations. The data on the question two were analysed using means and standard deviations while the question three data were used to model the data through CB-SEM. Results Table 1 Descriptive Statistics Variables Range M SD Var. Skew. Kurt. Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic S. E Statistic S. E Creative Thinking 89 81.25 12.48 155.73 − .79 .104 1.11 .21 Education for Sustainable Development 69.00 81.44 11.99 143.81 -1.09 .104 1.68 .21 The descriptive statistics computed for the two variables, creative thinking (CT) and education for sustainable development (ESD), are presented in Table 1 and provide insight into the data’s distributional characteristics. For CT, the range of scores was 89 from a mean of 81.25 (SD = 12.48). The distribution of scores was negatively skewed (Skewness = -0.791) indicating most participants scored above the mean. The kurtosis value (1.108) indicates a moderately peaked distribution as the value is greater than 0 which suggests the distribution is slightly peaked above the normal distribution. Therefore, while the scores are skewed, they are reasonably close to normal, tending towards higher scores. For ESD, the range of scores was 69 and the mean was 81.44 (SD = 11.99). The distribution was also negatively skewed (Skewness = -1.085) indicating that the majority of respondents had higher test scores, and a larger percentage of lower scores relative to higher scores. The value for kurtosis (1.679) indicates a moderate level of peakedness indicating that the distribution of scores is slightly more peaked than the normal curve. Hence, although the scores from both Creative Thinking and Education for Sustainable Development were shown to be slightly skewed from the normal distribution, they had approximately normally shaped distributions with a slight negative skewness. Table 2 Correlation Matrix Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sensitivity 1.000 Connecting and Synthesis .474 1.000 Originality .368 .538 1.000 Resistance to Premature Closure .392 .493 .408 1.000 Creative Character .428 .478 .327 .597 1.000 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility .317 .428 .275 .516 .419 1.000 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement .329 .441 .311 .476 .481 .311 1.000 Systems Thinking and Future Orientation .361 .373 .275 .465 .399 .288 .287 1.000 Based on the correlation matrix in Table 2 , it is concluded that all variables in this research were positively correlated to each other, which means the higher the level of one variable, the higher the levels of all other variables. The overall range of correlation coefficients was from r = .275 to r = .597, demonstrating a predominance of low to moderate correlations. As such, it appears that the variables are correlated but not to the degree they would be considered the same construct or redundant. Table 3 Regression Weights DVs IVs Estimate S.E. C.R. p Systems Thinking and Future Orientation <--- Creative Character .163 .070 2.349 .019 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement <--- Creative Character .304 .060 5.064 .000 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility <--- Creative Character .100 .045 2.239 .025 Systems Thinking and Future Orientation <--- Resistance to Premature Closure .438 .075 5.877 .000 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement <--- Resistance to Premature Closure .296 .064 4.603 .000 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility <--- Resistance to Premature Closure .355 .048 7.388 .000 Systems Thinking and Future Orientation <--- Originality .025 .088 .282 .778 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement <--- Originality .053 .076 .697 .486 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility <--- Originality − .034 .057 − .594 .552 Systems Thinking and Future Orientation <--- Connecting and Synthesising .152 .073 2.076 .038 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement <--- Connecting and Synthesising .247 .063 3.905 .000 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility <--- Connecting and Synthesising .195 .047 4.134 .000 Systems Thinking and Future Orientation <--- Sensitivity .271 .079 3.415 .000 Sustainable Action and Community Engagement <--- Sensitivity .075 .068 1.092 .275 Ethical Values and Social Responsibility <--- Sensitivity .064 .051 1.252 .211 In Table 3 , the regression estimates of dimensions of creative thinking (creative character, resistance to premature closure, originality, connecting and synthesising, and sensitivity) and dimensions of education for sustainable development (systems thinking and future orientation, sustainable action and community engagement, and ethical values and social responsibility) are displayed. For instance, creative character significantly predicted systems thinking and future orientation (B = 0.163, SE = 0.070, CR = 2.349, p = .019); sustainable action and community engagement (B = 0.304, SE = 0.060, CR = 5.064, p < .001); ethical values and social responsibility (B = 0.100, SE = 0.045, CR = 2.239, p = .025). Therefore, students who exhibit a strong creative character were more likely to exhibit greater levels of systems thinking oriented to the future, to engage in sustainable actions, and to possess an ethical social responsibility. the greatest effect of creative character was on sustainable action and community engagement. Likewise, resistance to premature closure was also identified as a strong and consistent predictor for each of the three dependent variables. Resistance to Premature Closure produced a strong positive effect on systems thinking and future orientation (B = 0.438, SE = 0.075, CR = 5.877, p < .001); sustainable action and community engagement (B = 0.296, SE = 0.064, CR = 4.603, p < .001); and ethical values and social responsibility (B = 0.355, SE = 0.048, CR = 7.388, p < .001). The trend of the results shows that students who demonstrate higher levels of openness, tolerance for ambiguity, and an ability to delay closure are more likely than students with lower levels to develop sustainability-focused thoughts and actions, as well as engage in ethical and social responsibility behaviour. As evidenced in the model, the predictor resistance to premature closure was the strongest predictor of both ethical values & social responsibility and systems thinking & future-oriented thinking. Surprisingly, originality had no significant predictive ability on the three outcome variables studied (e.g., systems thinking & future orientation, B = 0.025, SE = 0.088, CR = 0.282, p = .778; sustainable action & community engagement, B = 0.053, SE = 0.076, CR = 0.697, p = .486; and ethical values and social responsibility, B = -0.034, SE = 0.057, CR = -0.594, p = .552). Therefore, it appears that while originality is an important dimension of creative thinking, it does not offer any unique contribution to predicting sustainability-based outcomes when other creative predictor variables are also present. Nonetheless, connecting and synthesizing offered a significant predictive value towards all three dependent variables in their respective models [connecting and synthesizing had an effect on systems thinking and future orientation (B = 0.152, SE = 0.073, CR = 2.076, p = .038), sustainable action and community engagement (B = 0.247, SE = 0.063, CR = 3.905, p < .001), and ethical values and social responsibility (B = 0.195, SE = 0.047, CR = 4.134, p < .001)]. In other words, students who are able to connect and synthesize multiple ideas and perspectives (e.g., connections and synthesis of creative thinking in school, work, and community settings) will have greater feasibility of engaging in sustainable actions, adopting ethical and socially responsible values, and providing a systems-based future-oriented perspective. Lastly, sensitivity provided a more selective effect on the three independent variables studied [(sensitivity predicted systems thinking and future orientation (B = 0.271, SE = 0.079, CR = 3.415, p < .001), but did not predict Sustainable Action & Community Engagement (B = 0.075, SE = 0.068, CR = 1.092, p = .275) or ethical values and social responsibility (B = 0.064, SE = 0.051, CR = 1.252, p = .211)]. Thus, sensitivity may help students develop wider-ranging systems thinking and future-oriented perspectives, but does not produce a unique effect on ethical values or community-based sustainable actions when other creative dimensions are included in the model. Taken together, the regression analyses suggest that not all dimensions of creative thinking offer the same level of predictive validity toward sustainability-based outcome variables. However, resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesizing and creative character were the strongest and most consistent predictors for all three outcome variables, while originality provided no significant unique predictive value and sensitivity only provided a significant effect for the systems thinking and future oriented dimension. The results are pictorially presented in Fig. 1 as path model for dimensions of CT and ESD. Table 4 Regression Weights (Composites) DV IV Estimate S.E. C.R. p Education for Sustainable Development <--- Creative Thinking .586 .033 18.020 .000 In the composite model in Table 4 , it was found that creative thinking (CT) was a statistically significant and strong positive predictor of education for sustainable development (ESD) [B = .586, SE = .033, CR = 18.020, p < .001], meaning as a student’s ability for creative thinking increases, they would exhibit increased levels of education for sustainable development. the positive coefficient indicates that as students' perceptions of creative thinking strengthen, so will their orientation towards education for sustainable development in a large way. In addition, the very large value of Critical Ratio (CR = 18.020) supports the notion that creative thinking is a strong predictor of ESD. In practical terms, this means if students have more opportunities to generate ideas, create new relationships, and think creatively about problems, they will also exhibit greater education for sustainable development outcomes than those who do not possess these qualities and opportunities. The results are pictorially presented in Fig. 1 as path model for dimensions of CT and ESD. Discussion The central finding of this study is that creative thinking functions as a meaningful antecedent of education for sustainable development among university students. This result reinforces the view that creativity should not be treated as an optional enrichment in higher education, but as a core capability for sustainability learning. Sandri ( 2013 ) argues that creativity is an essential part of learning for sustainability because sustainable development requires learners to move beyond routine responses and envision alternatives to the status quo. In the same vein, the broader literature provided for this study positions ESD as a transformative framework that develops the skills, values, and dispositions needed to address environmental, social, and economic challenges. Taken together, the present findings suggest that students’ creative capacities are not merely associated with academic expression; they are implicated in how students interpret sustainability problems and orient themselves toward sustainable futures. (Sandri, 2013 ; Bonilla-Jurado et al., 2024 ; MuhammedZein & Abdullateef, 2025 ). A more refined contribution of the study lies in showing that not all dimensions of creative thinking matter equally. The most consistent predictors were resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character. Conceptually, this pattern is coherent. Sustainability problems are complex, open-ended, and often marked by uncertainty; therefore, students who can tolerate ambiguity, suspend quick judgment, and integrate diverse perspectives are better positioned to engage systems thinking, ethical reflection, and sustainability-oriented action. This interpretation aligns closely with López et al. ( 2024 ), who conclude that creativity supports sustainability learning through ideation, collaboration, reflection, experimentation, and interdisciplinary integration rather than through isolated novelty alone. It also fits Sandri’s ( 2013 ) argument that higher education must cultivate deeper forms of learning if graduates are to respond to “wicked” sustainability challenges. In practical terms, the present results suggest that the creative dispositions most relevant to ESD are those that support openness, relational thinking, and purposeful engagement, not simply the production of unusual ideas. (López et al., 2024 ; Sandri, 2013 ). The non-significant role of originality is especially instructive. Although originality is often treated as the hallmark of creativity, the present findings imply that originality alone may be insufficient to explain sustainability-oriented outcomes when more integrative and self-regulatory creative dimensions are considered simultaneously. This does not diminish the value of originality; rather, it suggests that in ESD contexts, novelty must be accompanied by judgment, synthesis, and sustained engagement with real-world complexity. This interpretation is consistent with the literature you provided, which emphasizes creativity as a process of generating workable responses to contemporary problems rather than novelty for its own sake. It also complements López et al.’s ( 2024 ) framing of creativity as embedded in teaching, learning environments, and application. Thus, what appears to matter most for ESD is actionable and context-sensitive creativity. Sensitivity showed a narrower effect, contributing primarily to future-oriented and systems-based thinking rather than directly to ethical values or community engagement. This finding is theoretically plausible. Sensitivity may help students notice interdependence, anticipate consequences, and perceive subtle relationships within complex systems, yet these perceptions do not automatically translate into responsible action or ethical commitment. ESD, by design, requires more than awareness; it requires participation, judgment, and action. That distinction is supported by studies showing that ESD shapes attitudes and behaviour when it is enacted through meaningful pedagogy and institutional support. Abdullahi et al. ( 2024 ), for example, found that ESD positively influences university students’ sustainability behaviour, while MuhammedZein and Abdullateef ( 2025 ) emphasize the effectiveness of inquiry-based and constructivist pedagogies. The implication is straightforward: perceptual sensitivity may be an entry point, but pedagogical design is required to convert awareness into ethical and community-oriented sustainability practice. The findings also carry an important curricular implication. If creative thinking is to strengthen ESD, universities should design learning experiences that deliberately cultivate the dimensions of creativity most relevant to sustainability: openness to complexity, synthesis across domains, and a creative character oriented toward engagement and responsibility. This implication is supported by evidence that creative pedagogies improve problem solving, critical thinking, and student engagement, and that creativity-centred learning environments can use sustainability issues as prompts for deeper intellectual work. It is equally supported by Hashim et al. ( 2023 ), who found that teachers’ creativity positively influences ESD pedagogical practices. Accordingly, the present study supports a shift from viewing creativity as a general graduate attribute to treating it as a strategic educational resource for sustainability. Such a position is also consistent with evidence from Osmani et al. ( 2022 ), where creativity was shown to influence entrepreneurial intention, underscoring that creativity has consequences well beyond the classroom and can shape innovation-oriented graduate outcomes. Conclusion This study demonstrates that creative thinking is a substantive driver of education for sustainable development among university students. The evidence indicates that creativity supports ESD most effectively when it is expressed through openness to complexity, the ability to connect and synthesise ideas, and a creative character oriented toward responsible engagement. In other words, the forms of creativity that matter most for sustainable development are not simply those that produce novel ideas, but those that help students think systemically, act responsibly, and respond constructively to uncertain and interconnected problems. This finding strengthens the argument that creative thinking should be treated as a strategic educational capability in higher education rather than as a peripheral graduate attribute. The study also clarifies that the dimensions of creative thinking do not contribute equally to ESD. Resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character emerged as the most educationally consequential dimensions, suggesting that sustainability learning depends heavily on students’ capacity to tolerate ambiguity, integrate multiple perspectives, and engage thoughtfully with real-world issues. By contrast, originality alone did not provide unique explanatory value when these broader dimensions were considered, while sensitivity mainly contributed to systems-oriented and future-focused thinking. Taken together, the findings show that higher education institutions are more likely to strengthen ESD when they cultivate applied, integrative, and action-oriented creativity. Recommendations The Academic Boards and curriculum committees of Technical Universities in Ghana should revise programme specifications so that ESD outcomes are embedded into core courses through assessed creative-thinking tasks, especially those that require students to analyse complex sustainability problems, delay premature conclusions, compare competing solutions, and synthesise environmental, social, and economic perspectives. The National Council for Tertiary Education, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, and university quality assurance directorates should include creative-thinking-for-ESD indicators in programme accreditation and internal quality review templates. These indicators should move beyond generic statements about innovation and require evidence that departments are using inquiry-based, project-based, and interdisciplinary tasks to cultivate synthesis, reflective judgment, and sustainability-oriented action. This would align institutional monitoring with the dimensions that the present study found to be most influential. The Deans, and Heads of Department should organise targeted staff development for lecturers on how to teach for resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character. The training should focus on concrete classroom methods such as case-based sustainability inquiry, design challenges, reflective journals, scenario analysis, and cross-disciplinary group projects. Lecturer development should not be framed broadly as “innovation training,” but specifically as preparation for designing tasks that help students handle ambiguity, integrate perspectives, and convert ideas into responsible sustainability responses. The students’ affairs divisions and SRC leadership should support peer-led sustainability innovation forums, where students present campus or community sustainability problems and receive structured feedback from peers across disciplines. These forums should be designed to build confidence in collaborative synthesis, reflective judgment, and socially responsible action rather than only celebrating novel ideas. This would help translate classroom creativity into visible student-led sustainability practice. Implications, Limitations, and Future Research The implications for higher education are direct. Universities seeking to strengthen ESD should design curricula and learning environments that cultivate disciplined openness, synthesis across perspectives, and creative character rather than focusing narrowly on novelty. This means giving students opportunities to engage ambiguous problems, connect knowledge across contexts, and apply ideas to authentic sustainability challenges. It also means recognizing that creativity is not only a student attribute but a pedagogical resource, as the literature shows that teachers’ creativity supports stronger ESD practice. At the same time, the findings should be interpreted with appropriate caution. The study is based on self-reported perceptions, which may introduce common method bias and social desirability effects. In addition, because the evidence is drawn from students in selected technical universities, generalizability beyond similar higher education contexts should be made carefully. Future research should therefore test this model across wider institutional and disciplinary settings, use longitudinal or mixed-method designs to clarify causal mechanisms, and examine whether creative-thinking dimensions operate differently across cultural and curricular environments. Such work would help determine not only whether creative thinking predicts ESD, but how universities can most effectively cultivate the forms of creativity that matter most for sustainable development. Declarations Ethical Approval Ethical clearance for this study was obtained from the University of Education, Winneba Institutional Review Board (UEW-IRB) [UEW-IRB/EDU/2025]. All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were carried out in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments. Consent to Participate Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. Participation was voluntary, and respondents were assured of anonymity, confidentiality, and their right to withdraw at any stage without penalty. Consent was collected during the data collection period. Consent to Publish Not applicable Declaration of Interest The author of this paper had no interest to declare in as much as idea conceptualization and conducting of this paper is concern. Clinical trial number Not applicable Funding The author of this paper received no funding, whether internal or external. Author Contribution I.M and B.M.A conceptualized the study, designed the methodology, supervised data collection, conducted the statistical analyses, and drafted the original manuscript. J.E.O and V.E.E contributed to the theoretical framing of religiosity and disability studies, assisted in data interpretation, and critically reviewed the manuscript for intellectual content. K.T.D supported the development of the research instruments, validated the analytical procedures, and contributed to manuscript revision. R.K.N and S.K.A assisted with literature synthesis, data management, and manuscript editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Acknowledgement The authors duly acknowledge and appreciate the use of Claud AI and ChatGPT 4.o in proofreading the work and identifying redundant statements and phrases. Data Availability Data for this study are available and can be released upon an official request made to the authors. Ethics Statement This study followed the University of Education, Winneba Institutional Review Board. The research was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki (World Medical Association, 2013), the Belmont Report (White, 2020), and the guidelines and regulations of the University of Education, Winneba. References Abdullahi, A. M., Hussein, H. A., Ahmed, M. Y., Hussein, O. A., & Warsame, A. A. (2024). The impact of education for sustainable development on university students’ sustainability behavior: A case study from undergraduate students in Somalia. Frontiers in Education, 9, 1413687. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1413687 Akinsemolu, A. A., & Onyeaka, H. (2025). The role of green education in achieving the sustainable development goals: A review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews , 210 , 115239. Ansari, M. S. A. (2025). 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Education Sciences, 14, 824. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14080824 Mahlaole, S. T. (2025). Education for sustainable development’s role in influencing sustainable consumption behaviour among international students: A multi group analysis. Discover Education, 4, 104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00498-3 Mokski, E., Leal Filho, W., Sehnem, S., & Andrade Guerra, J. B. S. O. D. (2023). Education for sustainable development in higher education institutions: an approach for effective interdisciplinarity. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education , 24 (1), 96-117. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-07-2021-0306 Mróz, A., & Ocetkiewicz, I. (2024). Anticipatory thinking as a key competence in management for sustainability: the results of research among polish teenagers. Sustainability , 16 (22), 10036. Mróz, A., Łukasik, J. M., Jagielska, K., & Pikuła, N. G. (2025). Creativity of Pre-Service Teachers in the Context of Education for Sustainable Development: Evidence from a Study Among Teacher Education Students in Poland. Sustainability , 17 (20), 9116. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17209116 MuhammedZein, F. A., & Abdullateef, S. T. (2025). Quality education for sustainable development: Evolving pedagogies to maintain a balance between knowledge, skills, and values—Case study of Saudi universities. Sustainability, 17, 635. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17020635 Opoku, A., Ekung, S., Kugblenu, G., & Mushtaha, E. S. (2024). Education for sustainable development, the built environment, and the sustainable development goals. In The Elgar companion to the built environment and the sustainable development goals (pp. 178-194). Edward Elgar Publishing. Oskina, A., & Darinskaia, L. (2023). Promoting sustainable development issues through a creativity-centered e-learning course. Nurture, 17 (4), 747–758. https://doi.org/10.55951/nurture.v17i4.505 Osmani, M., El-Haddadeh, R., Hindi, N. M., & Weerakkody, V. (2022). The influence of creativity on the entrepreneurial intention of university female graduates: An SEM approach. Industry and Higher Education, 36 (5), 556–567. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222211061231 Purvis, B., Mao, Y., & Robinson, D. (2019). Three pillars of sustainability: in search of conceptual origins. Sustainability Science , 14 (3), 681-695. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-018-0627-5 Rey-Garcia, M., & Mato-Santiso, V. (2020). Enhancing the effects of university education for sustainable development on social sustainability: The role of social capital and real-world learning. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 21 (7), 1451–1476. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-02-2020-0063 Rieckmann, M. (2025). Transformation-Literate Citizens: Advancing Sustainable Development Through Education. In Intensive Livestock Production in Transition: Analyses, Concepts and Strategies for Sustainability Transformation of the Livestock Value Chain (pp. 379-389). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. Robertson, D., Bos, J. J., Fridman, I., & Grocott, L. (2025). Creative, effective, transformative: Creative learning and educator practice in education for sustainable development. Environmental Education Research , 1-37. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2025.2543013 Saleh, R., & Brem, A. (2023). Creativity for sustainability: An integrative literature review. Journal of Cleaner Production , 388 , 135848. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.135848 Salvador, E., & Comunian, R. (2024). Why and how higher education is so important for cultural and creative industries’ sustainable development? Industry and Higher Education, 38 (1), 6–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222231219250 Sandri, O. J. (2013). Exploring the role and value of creativity in education for sustainability. Environmental Education Research, 19 (6), 765–778. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2012.749978 Sathyanarayana, S., & Mohanasundaram, T. (2024). Fit indices in structural equation modelling and confirmatory factor analysis: reporting guidelines. Asian Journal of Economics, Business and Accounting , 24 (7), 561-577. Saw, Z. K., Yuen, J. J. X., Ashari, A., Ibrahim Bahemia, F., Low, Y. X., Nik Mustapha, N. M., & Lau, M. N. (2025). Forward-backward translation, content validity, face validity, construct validity, criterion validity, test-retest reliability, and internal consistency of a questionnaire on patient acceptance of orthodontic retainer. PloS one , 20 (1), e0314853. Singh, S., & Chakrabarti, A. (2025). Assessment of the creative potential of design problems via novelty and usefulness. Design Science , 11 , e51. Sureshchandar, G. S. (2023). Quality 4.0–a measurement model using the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) approach. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management , 40 (1), 280-303. Tabassum, R., Iqbal, S., Haneef, A., Yaseen, M., Tahira, R., Rasheed, K., Taj, S., & Ahmed, M. (2024). Impact of STEM education on creativity of university students. Kurdish Studies, 12 (5), 673–678. https://doi.org/10.53555/ks.v12i5.3299 Tam, C. O., Cheng, E. C., Chan, A. K., Rogers, J., & Tan, X. (2023). Exploring the characteristics of undergraduate students’ creative thinking skills. Int. J. Learn. Teach, 9, 191-196. Uzorka, A., Akiyode, O., & Isa, S. M. (2024). Strategies for engaging students in sustainability initiatives and fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility towards sustainable development. Discover Sustainability , 5 (1), 320. Yin, Y., Shi, D., & Fairchild, A. J. (2023). The effect of model size on the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA): The nonnormal case. Structural Equation Modelling: A Multidisciplinary Journal , 30 (3), 378-392. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Appendix.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers invited by journal 04 May, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 29 Apr, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 22 Apr, 2026 First submitted to journal 22 Apr, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9303109","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":636127418,"identity":"b285e470-3cac-4de2-bb77-5666f3053cf4","order_by":0,"name":"Inuusah 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to actions that lead to satisfying the needs of today while preparing the way for satisfying the needs of future generations (Borowy, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e). SD anchors on social, environmental and economic and its values must be indoctrinated among people from their formative years (Purvis et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). In contemporary higher education settings, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is seen as an important framework in developing skills, values, and dispositions that students require to mitigate environmental, social, and economic challenges they encounter (Chasokela, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Mokski et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). ESD represents the transformative educational approach that prepares learners for sustainable futures through informed decision-making, responsible action, and participation (Kaushal, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Current literature indicates that education for sustainable development (ESD) has the potential to enhance students’ academic achievement, increase their motivation and involvement, and develop their ability to solve challenges associated with creating a sustainable society. However, the limited resources and poor teacher preparation render the implementation of ESD programmes ineffective within higher educational institutions (Bonilla-Jurado et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; MuhammedZein \u0026amp; Abdullateef, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWithin this broader ESD conversation, creativity emerges as more than an optional enrichment; it appears as a central educational resource for imagining alternatives to unsustainable routines and for generating meaningful responses to contemporary challenges. Sandri (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) argues that creativity, innovation, and divergent thinking have not featured strongly enough in higher education literature on education for sustainability, despite their importance for helping learners envision and implement alternatives to the status quo. In Sandri’s formulation, creativity is not peripheral to sustainability learning but an essential part of it, especially when universities aim to cultivate graduates who can think beyond repetition and engage uncertainty productively. This argument is reinforced by Cheng (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e), who observes that the integration of creativity and environmental sustainability remains under-researched, even though creativity appears to support pro-environmental competencies and sustainable practice.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative thinking is a decisive construct for improving sustainability practices because it espouses sustainability dimensions in the process of creativity (Awan et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). The development of sustainability principes in education must be innately transformative on the students. Hence, nurturing in ESD concepts must transform learners’ systems and aptitudes sustainable practices (Rieckmann, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Creativity is placed at the forefront of ESD conversations (Haim \u0026amp; Aschauer, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Robertson et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). In this regard, creativity is viewed as the central manifestation of the collective imagination for developing alternative ways of living and responding to challenges while also representing one of the many resources available to ESD as educators work toward achieving alternatives for sustainable practices. Creativity, innovation, and divergent thinking are described by Sandri (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) as underrepresented in the literature of education for sustainability development in higher education. However, when considering Sandri's statement, creativity must be viewed as an integral aspect of the learning process for achieving education for sustainability (Ansari, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Cheng, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Furthermore, Cheng (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e) indicated that the integration of creativity and environmental sustainability is an area that requires further exploration; hitherto, they alleged that creativity enables friendly-environmental behaviours and sustainable practices among students. Likewise, Saleh and Brem (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e) indicated that creativity seen to be consolidating the process of realising sustainable development and not only supports people in adjusting to uncertainty. This implies that creative thinking, producing different solutions, and accepting diverse viewpoints are critical determinants for realising SDGs. According to Mróz et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e, p. 2), ‘a lot of evidence from more recent empirical and policy studies further clarifies how creativity links with sustainable development’. In the view of Kanzola and Petrakis (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e), creativity dwells in people’s social identity, where social and environmental (e.g., health, maturity, a positive attitude towards cultural change, social stability, environmental care, and material and non-material incentives) shape their creative potentials. This implies that creative behaviours in people can be exhibited when their social and cultural conditions are favourable, and these could lead them towards pro-sustainability actions (Mróz et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn present-day, alongside socioeconomic and ecological problem, the human race is threatened by climate change, resource degradation, and economic recessions (Koundouri et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). In alleviating these challenges, creativity appears to be the antidote. According to Mróz and Ocetkiewicz (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e), creativity is the most appropriate procedure that will enable sustainable practices in solving these challenges. Creativity is an act of conceptualising, realising, and thought processes that can lead to the creation of new ways for solving contemporary problems (Haim \u0026amp; Aschauer, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Singh \u0026amp; Chakrabarti, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Aside from the above, extant studies have shown an increasing link between the role of pedagogical approaches for fostering creativity and accomplishing sustainable development goals. In one such study by Li et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e), they found that creative thinking teaching methods positively influenced students’ learning outcomes, creative problem-solving abilities, critical thinking abilities, and level of involvement in studying vocational related courses. Correspondingly, Oskina and Darinskaia (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e) demonstrated that ESD issues could be used as prompts for creative tasks through creativity-based e-learning, as the experimental group showed adequate positive behaviours toward the learning environment and regard it as an avenue for developing creative abilities. Taken together, the studies imply that when educators intentionally design curriculum around the practice of creativity, it will help students become actively engaged, adventurous, and innovative with the instructional materials that align with sustainable development.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA related literature indicates that creativity contributes to sustainability learning by shaping how students understand, interpret, and apply knowledge. López et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e), in their systematic review, conclude that creativity contributes to learning within sustainable and eco-social educational approaches in cross-cutting ways, including ideation, design, implementation, collaboration, reflection, imagination, experimentation, and interdisciplinary integration. Their review is especially useful because it moves the discussion beyond seeing creativity as a personality trait and instead frames it as something embedded in teaching strategies, classroom environments, and learning processes. This perspective is valuable for studies of university students because it suggests that the educational environment can either suppress or cultivate the creative capacities needed for sustainable thinking and action.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eStudies in higher-education settings point to the broader institutional importance of creativity. For instance, Salvador and Comunian (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e) argue that higher education plays a key role in the sustainable development of cultural and creative industries and note the growing demand for originality, creative solutions, and problem-solving capacities in skills-intensive work. Likewise, Osmani et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) further show that creativity positively influences entrepreneurial intention among university female graduates, underscoring that creativity has consequences not only for classroom learning but also for innovation, opportunity creation, and graduate futures. Although these studies are not direct measures of ESD outcomes, they strengthen the case that creativity is a strategic university-level capability with social and economic relevance, including relevance for sustainable development.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlso, several studies confirm that ESD influences student attitudes and behaviours in higher education. For instance, Abdullahi et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e) found a significant positive relationship between ESD and university students’ sustainability behaviour in Somalia, emphasizing the importance of integrating ESD into higher education curricula. Similarly, Mahlaole (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) found that ESD significantly influenced attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control in relation to sustainable consumption behaviour among students. These findings important because they indicate that ESD is not only about awareness or curriculum rhetoric; it can shape how students think and act. It is important to note that the effectiveness of ESD depends heavily on pedagogy and educators’ capacities. MuhammedZein and Abdullateef (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) report that constructivist, inquiry-based pedagogies promoted sustainable development education in Saudi universities. Hashim et al. (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e) found a significant positive relationship between teachers’ creativity and ESD pedagogical practices in TVET institutions, suggesting that creativity is not only a student outcome but also a teaching resource that influences how sustainability education is enacted. Taken together, these studies imply that any attempt to understand the influence of creativity on ESD among university students must attend both to student learning processes and to the educational practices that enable those processes.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eProblem Statement\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCreative thinking propels novelty, drives economic growth, and reduces systemic challenges in every human set-up (Haldar, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Therefore, the relationship between creativity and ESD is critical for the global futures of nations and their people (Karakatsani \u0026amp; Pliogou, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2026\u003c/span\u003e). ESD must take into consideration the primary aspects of sustainable development: environmental, social and economic dimensions in every creative procedure (Huang et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). Creative thinking aids problem-solving, which in turn that drives sustainable behaviours towards humanity and the environment (Ansari, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Chen \u0026amp; Chang, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). Importantly, creative thinking is a crucial driver for ESD and a key aspect of attaining the vision of SDG 2030 (Akinsemolu \u0026amp; Onyeaka, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Howarth et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Opoku et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). In the Ghanaian context, the value of creative thinking in the realm of ESD is less explored among higher education students (Boafo et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). In this regard, the current study tries to offer vital information as to how creative thinking could influence sustainable practices through ESD among students in selected Technical Universities in Ghana. This study timely and relevant because many universities are pushing resources into nurturing 21st century students that can take charge of the process of achieving the visions and missions of SDGs-2030. Nevertheless, the successes failures of such initiatives are less explored. Likewise, in the context of higher education, it is indispensable to know the importance assigned to sustainability practices among students, so as to mould them to become innovators and problem solvers of the world (Uzorka et al., 2025). Furthermore, with the many challenges that fraught ESD in this 21st century, levels of creativity and their relationship with ESD contribute enormously in the daily routine of people (Robertson et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Therefore, revelations from this study could serve as a first of a kind and shift stakeholders’ attention towards educational curriculums that would lead developing creative behaviours in students, which would in turn lead to students’ exhibiting sustainable practices and behaviours. Based on the forgoing, the study addressed the following question:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo what extent do creative thinking behaviours of students influence their ESD behaviours?\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e "},{"header":"Methods and Materials","content":"\u003ch2\u003eParticipants’ Selection\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this study, a survey was conducted to ascertain creative thinking behaviours as they influence ESD behaviours among selected Technical University students in Ghana. In all, 549 respondents were recruited through a stratified sampling procedure. The criteria were based on biological sex, level, and religious affiliation. The recruitment of the respondents was collaborative, with support from administrators and lecturers in the selected Technical Universities. With this, male respondents were 277 (50.5%) while female respondents were 271 (49.4%) and those who chose not to disclose was just one (.2%). Also, respondents affiliated to Christianity were 399 (72.7%) while those affiliated to Islam were 98 (17.9%), and African Traditional Religion were 52 (9.5%). Furthermore, level 100 respondents were 214 (39.0%), level 200 respondents were 180 (32.8%), level 300 respondents were 94 (17.1%), level 400 respondents were 55 (10.0%), level 500 respondents were 5 (.9%), and one (.2%) level 600 respondent.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eInstrumentation\u003c/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eTwo survey instruments were used to collect data from the respondents for the study. These instruments included the creative thinking scale and ESD scale. With the creative thinking scale, the Tam et al. (2013) students’ creative thinking skills was adopted. The scale had five dimensions: creative character (5-items, α = .792), resistance to premature closure (5-items, α = .754), originality (3-items, α.742), synthesizing (5-items, α = .753), and sensitivity (3-items, α = .605). The statements on the scale mirrored new and innovative ways students use to operate in their learning journey. The scale was scored based on a Likert-type with five-points from strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree = 5. The scale was subjected to confirmatory examination and the results showed acceptability of its use this study context. For example, the Comparative Fit Index (CFI = .979) and Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI = .972) both exceed the commonly recommended threshold of 0.90, indicating a good fit between the model and the data (Sathyanarayana \u0026amp; Mohanasundaram, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). Additionally, the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA = .052) is well below the .06 threshold, which suggests an excellent fit between the hypothesized model and the observed data (Yin et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). The Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR = .045) was also within the appropriate threshold of 0.08, further supporting the adequacy of the model’s fit (Holgado-Tello et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2026\u003c/span\u003e). In addition to the model fit, the convergent validity was established using Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and it recorded a value of .57, and this was within the comparative threshold (Fornell \u0026amp; Larcker, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1981\u003c/span\u003e). In terms of the internal consistency, it was established using Construct Reliability (CR) and this produced a value of .87 (Sureshchandar, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). Finally, all the items on scale loaded appropriately between .364 and .792 (Jöreskog et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Together, these indices confirm that the model fits the data well and is suitable for further analysis (Sathyanarayana \u0026amp; Mohanasundaram, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith ESD, the Education for Sustainable Development Scale (ESDS-20) was adopted from Edjah et al. (Under Review). The scale had three dimensions: systems thinking and future orientation (8-items, α = .868), sustainable action and community engagement (7-items, α = .852), and ethical values and social responsibility (5-items, α = 810). The items on the scale reflected the key areas of sustainability such as economic, social, and environmental. The scale was on a five-point Likert-type ranging from strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree = 5. The scale was contextually appropriate and its adoption did not demand further manipulations. As well, expert reviews were sought from three educational measurement and evaluation professionals for them to ascertain the content and face validity of the scale (Saw et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). Above all, the scale met the required threshold of internal consistency with a composite Cronbach’s alpha value of .921 (Izah et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eData Analyses\u003c/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe data was analysed using both descriptive (means and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (CB-SEM). Before the analyses, the data screened for missing values and normality checks were performed. Specifically, data on research question one was analysed using means and standard deviations. The data on the question two were analysed using means and standard deviations while the question three data were used to model the data through CB-SEM.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDescriptive Statistics\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"9\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eVariables\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRange\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eM\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSD\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eVar.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSkew.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c9\" namest=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKurt.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS. E\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistic\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS. E\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Thinking\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e89\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e12.48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e155.73\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.79\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.104\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEducation for Sustainable Development\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e69.00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81.44\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11.99\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e143.81\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-1.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.104\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.68\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe descriptive statistics computed for the two variables, creative thinking (CT) and education for sustainable development (ESD), are presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e and provide insight into the data\u0026rsquo;s distributional characteristics. For CT, the range of scores was 89 from a mean of 81.25 (SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;12.48). The distribution of scores was negatively skewed (Skewness = -0.791) indicating most participants scored above the mean. The kurtosis value (1.108) indicates a moderately peaked distribution as the value is greater than 0 which suggests the distribution is slightly peaked above the normal distribution. Therefore, while the scores are skewed, they are reasonably close to normal, tending towards higher scores. For ESD, the range of scores was 69 and the mean was 81.44 (SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;11.99). The distribution was also negatively skewed (Skewness = -1.085) indicating that the majority of respondents had higher test scores, and a larger percentage of lower scores relative to higher scores. The value for kurtosis (1.679) indicates a moderate level of peakedness indicating that the distribution of scores is slightly more peaked than the normal curve. Hence, although the scores from both Creative Thinking and Education for Sustainable Development were shown to be slightly skewed from the normal distribution, they had approximately normally shaped distributions with a slight negative skewness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCorrelation Matrix\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"9\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eVariables\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSensitivity\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConnecting and Synthesis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.474\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOriginality\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.368\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.538\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eResistance to Premature Closure\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.392\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.493\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.408\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Character\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.428\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.478\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.327\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.597\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.317\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.428\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.275\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.516\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.419\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.329\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.441\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.311\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.476\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.481\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.311\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.361\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.373\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.275\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.465\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.399\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.288\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.287\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBased on the correlation matrix in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e, it is concluded that all variables in this research were positively correlated to each other, which means the higher the level of one variable, the higher the levels of all other variables. The overall range of correlation coefficients was from r =\u0026thinsp;.275 to r =\u0026thinsp;.597, demonstrating a predominance of low to moderate correlations. As such, it appears that the variables are correlated but not to the degree they would be considered the same construct or redundant.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eRegression Weights\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cspan type=\"Underline\" class=\"Underline\" name=\"Emphasis\"\u003eDVs\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIVs\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEstimate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.E.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.R.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Character\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.163\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.070\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.349\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.019\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Character\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.304\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.060\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.064\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Character\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.100\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.045\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.239\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.025\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eResistance to Premature Closure\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.438\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.075\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.877\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eResistance to Premature Closure\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.296\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.064\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.603\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eResistance to Premature Closure\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.355\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.048\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.388\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOriginality\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.025\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.088\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.282\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.778\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOriginality\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.053\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.076\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.697\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.486\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOriginality\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.034\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.057\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.594\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.552\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConnecting and Synthesising\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.152\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.073\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.076\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.038\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConnecting and Synthesising\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.247\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.063\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.905\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConnecting and Synthesising\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.195\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.047\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.134\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystems Thinking and Future Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSensitivity\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.271\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.079\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.415\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSustainable Action and Community Engagement\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSensitivity\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.075\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.068\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.092\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.275\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthical Values and Social Responsibility\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSensitivity\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.064\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.051\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.252\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.211\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, the regression estimates of dimensions of creative thinking (creative character, resistance to premature closure, originality, connecting and synthesising, and sensitivity) and dimensions of education for sustainable development (systems thinking and future orientation, sustainable action and community engagement, and ethical values and social responsibility) are displayed. For instance, creative character significantly predicted systems thinking and future orientation (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.163, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.070, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.349, p = .019); sustainable action and community engagement (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.304, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.060, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.064, p \u0026lt; .001); ethical values and social responsibility (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.100, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.045, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.239, p = .025). Therefore, students who exhibit a strong creative character were more likely to exhibit greater levels of systems thinking oriented to the future, to engage in sustainable actions, and to possess an ethical social responsibility. the greatest effect of creative character was on sustainable action and community engagement.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLikewise, resistance to premature closure was also identified as a strong and consistent predictor for each of the three dependent variables. Resistance to Premature Closure produced a strong positive effect on systems thinking and future orientation (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.438, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.075, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.877, p \u0026lt; .001); sustainable action and community engagement (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.296, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.064, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.603, p \u0026lt; .001); and ethical values and social responsibility (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.355, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.048, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;7.388, p \u0026lt; .001). The trend of the results shows that students who demonstrate higher levels of openness, tolerance for ambiguity, and an ability to delay closure are more likely than students with lower levels to develop sustainability-focused thoughts and actions, as well as engage in ethical and social responsibility behaviour. As evidenced in the model, the predictor resistance to premature closure was the strongest predictor of both ethical values \u0026amp; social responsibility and systems thinking \u0026amp; future-oriented thinking.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSurprisingly, originality had no significant predictive ability on the three outcome variables studied (e.g., systems thinking \u0026amp; future orientation, B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.025, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.088, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.282, p = .778; sustainable action \u0026amp; community engagement, B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.053, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.076, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.697, p = .486; and ethical values and social responsibility, B = -0.034, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.057, CR = -0.594, p = .552). Therefore, it appears that while originality is an important dimension of creative thinking, it does not offer any unique contribution to predicting sustainability-based outcomes when other creative predictor variables are also present.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNonetheless, connecting and synthesizing offered a significant predictive value towards all three dependent variables in their respective models [connecting and synthesizing had an effect on systems thinking and future orientation (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.152, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.073, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.076, p = .038), sustainable action and community engagement (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.247, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.063, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.905, p \u0026lt; .001), and ethical values and social responsibility (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.195, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.047, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.134, p \u0026lt; .001)]. In other words, students who are able to connect and synthesize multiple ideas and perspectives (e.g., connections and synthesis of creative thinking in school, work, and community settings) will have greater feasibility of engaging in sustainable actions, adopting ethical and socially responsible values, and providing a systems-based future-oriented perspective.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLastly, sensitivity provided a more selective effect on the three independent variables studied [(sensitivity predicted systems thinking and future orientation (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.271, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.079, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.415, p \u0026lt; .001), but did not predict Sustainable Action \u0026amp; Community Engagement (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.075, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.068, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.092, p = .275) or ethical values and social responsibility (B\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.064, SE\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.051, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.252, p = .211)]. Thus, sensitivity may help students develop wider-ranging systems thinking and future-oriented perspectives, but does not produce a unique effect on ethical values or community-based sustainable actions when other creative dimensions are included in the model.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTaken together, the regression analyses suggest that not all dimensions of creative thinking offer the same level of predictive validity toward sustainability-based outcome variables. However, resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesizing and creative character were the strongest and most consistent predictors for all three outcome variables, while originality provided no significant unique predictive value and sensitivity only provided a significant effect for the systems thinking and future oriented dimension. The results are pictorially presented in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e as path model for dimensions of CT and ESD.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eRegression Weights (Composites)\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDV\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIV\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEstimate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.E.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.R.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEducation for Sustainable Development\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;---\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCreative Thinking\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.586\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.033\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18.020\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.000\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the composite model in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e, it was found that creative thinking (CT) was a statistically significant and strong positive predictor of education for sustainable development (ESD) [B = .586, SE = .033, CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;18.020, p \u0026lt; .001], meaning as a student\u0026rsquo;s ability for creative thinking increases, they would exhibit increased levels of education for sustainable development. the positive coefficient indicates that as students' perceptions of creative thinking strengthen, so will their orientation towards education for sustainable development in a large way. In addition, the very large value of Critical Ratio (CR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;18.020) supports the notion that creative thinking is a strong predictor of ESD. In practical terms, this means if students have more opportunities to generate ideas, create new relationships, and think creatively about problems, they will also exhibit greater education for sustainable development outcomes than those who do not possess these qualities and opportunities. The results are pictorially presented in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e as path model for dimensions of CT and ESD.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe central finding of this study is that creative thinking functions as a meaningful antecedent of education for sustainable development among university students. This result reinforces the view that creativity should not be treated as an optional enrichment in higher education, but as a core capability for sustainability learning. Sandri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) argues that creativity is an essential part of learning for sustainability because sustainable development requires learners to move beyond routine responses and envision alternatives to the status quo. In the same vein, the broader literature provided for this study positions ESD as a transformative framework that develops the skills, values, and dispositions needed to address environmental, social, and economic challenges. Taken together, the present findings suggest that students\u0026rsquo; creative capacities are not merely associated with academic expression; they are implicated in how students interpret sustainability problems and orient themselves toward sustainable futures. (Sandri, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e; Bonilla-Jurado et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; MuhammedZein \u0026amp; Abdullateef, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA more refined contribution of the study lies in showing that not all dimensions of creative thinking matter equally. The most consistent predictors were resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character. Conceptually, this pattern is coherent. Sustainability problems are complex, open-ended, and often marked by uncertainty; therefore, students who can tolerate ambiguity, suspend quick judgment, and integrate diverse perspectives are better positioned to engage systems thinking, ethical reflection, and sustainability-oriented action. This interpretation aligns closely with L\u0026oacute;pez et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e), who conclude that creativity supports sustainability learning through ideation, collaboration, reflection, experimentation, and interdisciplinary integration rather than through isolated novelty alone. It also fits Sandri\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) argument that higher education must cultivate deeper forms of learning if graduates are to respond to \u0026ldquo;wicked\u0026rdquo; sustainability challenges. In practical terms, the present results suggest that the creative dispositions most relevant to ESD are those that support openness, relational thinking, and purposeful engagement, not simply the production of unusual ideas. (L\u0026oacute;pez et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Sandri, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe non-significant role of originality is especially instructive. Although originality is often treated as the hallmark of creativity, the present findings imply that originality alone may be insufficient to explain sustainability-oriented outcomes when more integrative and self-regulatory creative dimensions are considered simultaneously. This does not diminish the value of originality; rather, it suggests that in ESD contexts, novelty must be accompanied by judgment, synthesis, and sustained engagement with real-world complexity. This interpretation is consistent with the literature you provided, which emphasizes creativity as a process of generating workable responses to contemporary problems rather than novelty for its own sake. It also complements L\u0026oacute;pez et al.\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e) framing of creativity as embedded in teaching, learning environments, and application. Thus, what appears to matter most for ESD is actionable and context-sensitive creativity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSensitivity showed a narrower effect, contributing primarily to future-oriented and systems-based thinking rather than directly to ethical values or community engagement. This finding is theoretically plausible. Sensitivity may help students notice interdependence, anticipate consequences, and perceive subtle relationships within complex systems, yet these perceptions do not automatically translate into responsible action or ethical commitment. ESD, by design, requires more than awareness; it requires participation, judgment, and action. That distinction is supported by studies showing that ESD shapes attitudes and behaviour when it is enacted through meaningful pedagogy and institutional support. Abdullahi et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e), for example, found that ESD positively influences university students\u0026rsquo; sustainability behaviour, while MuhammedZein and Abdullateef (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) emphasize the effectiveness of inquiry-based and constructivist pedagogies. The implication is straightforward: perceptual sensitivity may be an entry point, but pedagogical design is required to convert awareness into ethical and community-oriented sustainability practice.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe findings also carry an important curricular implication. If creative thinking is to strengthen ESD, universities should design learning experiences that deliberately cultivate the dimensions of creativity most relevant to sustainability: openness to complexity, synthesis across domains, and a creative character oriented toward engagement and responsibility. This implication is supported by evidence that creative pedagogies improve problem solving, critical thinking, and student engagement, and that creativity-centred learning environments can use sustainability issues as prompts for deeper intellectual work. It is equally supported by Hashim et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e), who found that teachers\u0026rsquo; creativity positively influences ESD pedagogical practices. Accordingly, the present study supports a shift from viewing creativity as a general graduate attribute to treating it as a strategic educational resource for sustainability. Such a position is also consistent with evidence from Osmani et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e), where creativity was shown to influence entrepreneurial intention, underscoring that creativity has consequences well beyond the classroom and can shape innovation-oriented graduate outcomes.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study demonstrates that creative thinking is a substantive driver of education for sustainable development among university students. The evidence indicates that creativity supports ESD most effectively when it is expressed through openness to complexity, the ability to connect and synthesise ideas, and a creative character oriented toward responsible engagement. In other words, the forms of creativity that matter most for sustainable development are not simply those that produce novel ideas, but those that help students think systemically, act responsibly, and respond constructively to uncertain and interconnected problems. This finding strengthens the argument that creative thinking should be treated as a strategic educational capability in higher education rather than as a peripheral graduate attribute. The study also clarifies that the dimensions of creative thinking do not contribute equally to ESD. Resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character emerged as the most educationally consequential dimensions, suggesting that sustainability learning depends heavily on students\u0026rsquo; capacity to tolerate ambiguity, integrate multiple perspectives, and engage thoughtfully with real-world issues. By contrast, originality alone did not provide unique explanatory value when these broader dimensions were considered, while sensitivity mainly contributed to systems-oriented and future-focused thinking. Taken together, the findings show that higher education institutions are more likely to strengthen ESD when they cultivate applied, integrative, and action-oriented creativity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eRecommendations\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Academic Boards and curriculum committees of Technical Universities in Ghana should revise programme specifications so that ESD outcomes are embedded into core courses through assessed creative-thinking tasks, especially those that require students to analyse complex sustainability problems, delay premature conclusions, compare competing solutions, and synthesise environmental, social, and economic perspectives.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe National Council for Tertiary Education, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, and university quality assurance directorates should include creative-thinking-for-ESD indicators in programme accreditation and internal quality review templates. These indicators should move beyond generic statements about innovation and require evidence that departments are using inquiry-based, project-based, and interdisciplinary tasks to cultivate synthesis, reflective judgment, and sustainability-oriented action. This would align institutional monitoring with the dimensions that the present study found to be most influential.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Deans, and Heads of Department should organise targeted staff development for lecturers on how to teach for resistance to premature closure, connecting and synthesising, and creative character. The training should focus on concrete classroom methods such as case-based sustainability inquiry, design challenges, reflective journals, scenario analysis, and cross-disciplinary group projects. Lecturer development should not be framed broadly as \u0026ldquo;innovation training,\u0026rdquo; but specifically as preparation for designing tasks that help students handle ambiguity, integrate perspectives, and convert ideas into responsible sustainability responses.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe students\u0026rsquo; affairs divisions and SRC leadership should support peer-led sustainability innovation forums, where students present campus or community sustainability problems and receive structured feedback from peers across disciplines. These forums should be designed to build confidence in collaborative synthesis, reflective judgment, and socially responsible action rather than only celebrating novel ideas. This would help translate classroom creativity into visible student-led sustainability practice.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eImplications, Limitations, and Future Research\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe implications for higher education are direct. Universities seeking to strengthen ESD should design curricula and learning environments that cultivate disciplined openness, synthesis across perspectives, and creative character rather than focusing narrowly on novelty. This means giving students opportunities to engage ambiguous problems, connect knowledge across contexts, and apply ideas to authentic sustainability challenges. It also means recognizing that creativity is not only a student attribute but a pedagogical resource, as the literature shows that teachers\u0026rsquo; creativity supports stronger ESD practice.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt the same time, the findings should be interpreted with appropriate caution. The study is based on self-reported perceptions, which may introduce common method bias and social desirability effects. In addition, because the evidence is drawn from students in selected technical universities, generalizability beyond similar higher education contexts should be made carefully.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eFuture research should therefore test this model across wider institutional and disciplinary settings, use longitudinal or mixed-method designs to clarify causal mechanisms, and examine whether creative-thinking dimensions operate differently across cultural and curricular environments. Such work would help determine not only whether creative thinking predicts ESD, but how universities can most effectively cultivate the forms of creativity that matter most for sustainable development.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e "},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eEthical Approval\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e Ethical clearance for this study was obtained from the University of Education, Winneba Institutional Review Board (UEW-IRB) [UEW-IRB/EDU/2025]. All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were carried out in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eConsent to Participate\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. Participation was voluntary, and respondents were assured of anonymity, confidentiality, and their right to withdraw at any stage without penalty. Consent was collected during the data collection period.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eConsent to Publish\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003eNot applicable\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eDeclaration of Interest\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe author of this paper had no interest to declare in as much as idea conceptualization and conducting of this paper is concern.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eClinical trial number\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eNot applicable\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFunding\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe author of this paper received no funding, whether internal or external.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eI.M and B.M.A conceptualized the study, designed the methodology, supervised data collection, conducted the statistical analyses, and drafted the original manuscript. J.E.O and V.E.E contributed to the theoretical framing of religiosity and disability studies, assisted in data interpretation, and critically reviewed the manuscript for intellectual content. K.T.D supported the development of the research instruments, validated the analytical procedures, and contributed to manuscript revision. R.K.N and S.K.A assisted with literature synthesis, data management, and manuscript editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgement\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe authors duly acknowledge and appreciate the use of Claud AI and ChatGPT 4.o in proofreading the work and identifying redundant statements and phrases.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData Availability\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eData for this study are available and can be released upon an official request made to the authors.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eEthics Statement\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis study followed the University of Education, Winneba Institutional Review Board. The research was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki (World Medical Association, 2013), the Belmont Report (White, 2020), and the guidelines and regulations of the University of Education, Winneba.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAbdullahi, A. M., Hussein, H. A., Ahmed, M. Y., Hussein, O. A., \u0026amp; Warsame, A. A. (2024). The impact of education for sustainable development on university students\u0026rsquo; sustainability behavior: A case study from undergraduate students in Somalia. \u003cem\u003eFrontiers in Education, 9,\u003c/em\u003e 1413687. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1413687\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAkinsemolu, A. A., \u0026amp; Onyeaka, H. (2025). 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Impact of STEM education on creativity of university students. \u003cem\u003eKurdish Studies, 12\u003c/em\u003e(5), 673\u0026ndash;678. https://doi.org/10.53555/ks.v12i5.3299\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTam, C. O., Cheng, E. C., Chan, A. K., Rogers, J., \u0026amp; Tan, X. (2023). Exploring the characteristics of undergraduate students\u0026rsquo; creative thinking skills. \u003cem\u003eInt. J. Learn. Teach, 9,\u003c/em\u003e 191-196.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUzorka, A., Akiyode, O., \u0026amp; Isa, S. M. (2024). Strategies for engaging students in sustainability initiatives and fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility towards sustainable development. \u003cem\u003eDiscover Sustainability\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003e5\u003c/em\u003e(1), 320.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYin, Y., Shi, D., \u0026amp; Fairchild, A. J. (2023). The effect of model size on the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA): The nonnormal case. \u003cem\u003eStructural Equation Modelling: A Multidisciplinary Journal\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003e30\u003c/em\u003e(3), 378-392.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"discover-sustainability","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"disu","sideBox":"Learn more about [Discover Sustainability](https://www.springer.com/43621)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Discover Sustainability","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Discover Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"creative thinking, education for sustainable development, higher education, structural equation modelling, technical universities, Ghana","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9303109/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9303109/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examined the influence of creative thinking on education for sustainable development among students in selected Technical Universities in Ghana. Using a survey design, data were collected from 549 students through stratified sampling. Creative thinking was measured with Tam et al. (2013) creative thinking abilities scale while education for sustainable development was measured with ESDS-20 (Edjah et al., Under Review). The data were analysed with descriptive statistics and covariance-based structural equation modelling. The study revealed that creative thinking predicted education for sustainable development significantly and positively. In this regard, creative thinking is seen as an important educational resource for strengthening sustainable development learning of students in higher education. Therefore, the study recommends that technical universities in Ghana embed creativity-focused and sustainability-oriented learning tasks into core courses of their programmes and lecturer training so that students can develop the capacities needed for responsible action and future-oriented problem solving.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Creative Thinking Abilities as Predictors of Education for Sustainable Development among University Students","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-05-12 17:43:48","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9303109/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-05-05T00:19:58+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-04-29T06:12:52+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-04-22T16:43:17+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Discover Sustainability","date":"2026-04-22T15:21:37+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"discover-sustainability","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"disu","sideBox":"Learn more about [Discover Sustainability](https://www.springer.com/43621)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Discover Sustainability","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Discover Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"3978c2ad-2f46-4fd2-9507-098df86f4c7d","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 12th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"14","date":"2026-05-05T00:19:58+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-12T17:43:49+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-05-12 17:43:48","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9303109","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9303109","identity":"rs-9303109","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}