Exploring the Cognitive Process and Problem-Solving Style of a Black Videographer

The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in the demand for creative media for businesses to keep marketing themselves and pushing forward, making problem-solving skills of videographers essential. Videographers must understand their cognition and problem-solving style, which can be understood through Kirton's Adaption-Innovation (A-I) Theory and Expectancy Theory. The purpose of this research was to understand the individual cognition of the problem-solving process of a Black videographer. The participant was selected based on his success and asked a series of questions, including completion of the KAI (Kirton’s Adaption-Innovation Inventory). The results suggest that the problem-solving style and motivational beliefs of individuals are separate, and work together to influence how one approaches tasks, projects, and clients. The research questions centered around the participant's problem-solving style, motive of expectancy, instrumentality, and valence. The findings indicate that the participant's problem-solving style manifests as a Black videographer in the media industry by injecting originality through storytelling, and his business planning is influenced by personal expansion. His approach to choosing partners for his projects demonstrates the importance of considering both problem-solving style and valence to achieve success and satisfaction in creative endeavors. This study provides insight into the problem-solving process of a successful Black videographer, which can help other videographers understand themselves better and solve problems more effectively in the industry.