Ideation: solo or collaborative act?

The participants in the workshop can either work on their own or together with another participant or participants forming a duo or small team of ideators. This is a voluntary arrangement based on personal preference but does the choice make a difference to the ideation process and if so is ideating solo, or on one's own a more selfish act than ideating in a collaborate mode. Conventionally thinkig suggests that generating ideas is an individual pursuit where imagination, creativity and talent are most fruitfully manifested where "novelty" or "originality" are key words of achievement signifying single ownership of the idea. Generating ideas in a group, on the other hand, may seem more of a social activity where the dynamics of two or more individuals collaborating may produce more inclusive ideas covering a wider perspective of the design task or problem in question where the objective or vision is shared. As there is no conclusive evidence what mode works best, and ideation is contextual too, this suggests that ideation operates in either mode, or in combinations thereof. That is, the ideation process could be staged so there are a number of acts where the solo or collaborative mode alternates. This mixed mode of ideation is evident in design practice where individuals start ideating own their own but then come together to share and discuss their ideas. If there is a convergence of ideas, this then implies co-ownership of the ideation outcome by two or more ideators.