Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-18T08:16:55.140Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

9 - Creativity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2019

By
Christa L. Taylor ,
Vlad P. Gla˘veanu ,
Allison B. Kaufman  and
James C. Kaufman
Edited by
Robert J. Sternberg  and
Wade E. Pickren
Robert J. Sternberg
Affiliation:
Cornell University, New York
Wade E. Pickren
Affiliation:
Ithaca College, New York
Get access

Summary

The way that we define and think about creativity today is rooted in a myriad of past theories and beliefs, dating back to ancient times. Over the years, our idea of creativity has gone from being the purview of the divine to a gift for a select few to a basic human characteristic. Modern creativity research has also evolved over time, from research primarily focusing on individual differences in creative ability to more dynamic and complex models of creativity, which focus on how personal and contextual factors interact to influence creativity across domains and at different levels. Changes in both the philosophy and science of creativity have reflected the concerns and visions of human agency and society that were dominant at a given time. This chapter explores how the philosophy and science of creativity have evolved over time within this socio-historical context.

Keywords

creativitygeniussociohistorical contextcreativity modelshistory
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of the Intellectual History of Psychology , pp. 250 - 266
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agars, M. D., Kaufman, J. C., & Locke, T. R. (2008). Social influence and creativity in organizations: A multilevel lens for theory, research, and practice. In Mumford, M. D., Hunter, S. T., & Bedell-Avers, K. E. (Eds.), Multi-Level Issues in Organizational Innovation (Multi-Level Issues Series) (pp. 3–62). Amsterdam: JAI Press.Google Scholar
Amabile, T. M. (1982). Social psychology of creativity: A consensual assessment technique. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 43, 997–1013. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.43.5.997.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amabile, T. M. (1983). The social psychology of creativity: A componential conceptualization. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 357–376. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.45.2.357.Google Scholar
Amabile, T. M. (1985). Motivation and creativity: Effects of motivational orientation on creative writers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 393–399. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.48.2.393.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amabile, T. M. (1996). Creativity in Context: Update to “The Social Psychology of Creativity.” Boulder, CO: Westview Press.Google Scholar
Baer, J. (2011). How divergent thinking tests mislead us: Are the Torrance Tests still relevant in the 21st century? The Division 10 debate. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 5, 309–313. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baer, J., & Kaufman, J. C. (2005). Bridging generality and specificity: The amusement park theoretical (APT) model of creativity. Roeper Review, 27, 158–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barron, F. (1955). The disposition toward originality. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 51, 478–485.Google Scholar
Becker, G. (2014). A socio-historical overview of the creativity–pathology connection: From antiquity to contemporary times. In Kaufman, J. C. (Ed.), Creativity and Mental Illness (pp. 3–24). New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Becker, H. S. (2008). Art Worlds. (Updated and expanded ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Beghetto, R. A. (2016). Creative learning: A fresh look. Journal of Cognitive Education and Psychology, 15, 6–23. https://doi.org/10.1891/1945-8959.15.1.6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beghetto, R. A., & Kaufman, J. C. (2007). Toward a broader conception of creativity: A case for “mini-c” creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 1, 73–79. https://doi.org/10.1037/1931-3896.1.2.73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beghetto, R. A., & Kaufman, J. C. (2013). Fundamentals of creativity. Educational Leadership, 70, 10–15.Google Scholar
Boden, M. A. (2004). The Creative Mind: Myths and Mechanisms. New York: Psychology Press.Google Scholar
Costa, P. T. Jr., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and NEO Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) Professional Manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.Google Scholar
Cramond, B., Matthews-Morgan, J., Badnalos, D., & Zuo, L. (2005). A report on the 40-year follow-up of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking: Alive and well in the new millenium. Gifted Child Quarterly, 49, 283–291. https://doi.org/10.1177/001698620504900402.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1996). Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention. New York: HarperCollins.Google Scholar
Dacey, J. (1999). Concepts of creativity: A history. In Runco, M. & Pritzker, S. (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Creativity (Vol. 1, pp. 309–322). San Diego: Academic Press.Google Scholar
De Bono, E. (1968). New Think: The Use of Lateral Thinking in the Generation of New Ideas. New York: Avon.Google Scholar
De Bono, E. (1973). CoRT Thinking. Blandford, UK: Direct Educational Services.Google Scholar
Feist, G. J. (1998). A meta-analysis of personality in scientific and artistic creativity. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 2, 290–309. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr0204_5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Finke, R. A., Ward, T. B., Smith, S. M., Book, A. B., & Finke, A. (1996). Creative Cognition Theory, Research, and Applications. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Freud, S. (1989). Creative writers and day-dreaming. In Gay, P. (Ed.), The Freud Reader (pp. 436–443). New York: Norton. (Original work published 1908).Google Scholar
Galton, F. (1874). English Men of Science: Their Nature and Nurture. London: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Gardner, H. (1993). Creating Minds: An Anatomy as Seen through the Lives of Freud, Einstein, Picasso, Stravinsky, Eliot, Graham and Gandhi. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P. (2010a). Paradigms in the study of creativity: Introducing the perspective of cultural psychology. New Ideas in Psychology, 28, 79–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.newideapsych.2009.07.007.Google Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P. (2010b). Principles for a cultural psychology of creativity. Culture and Psychology, 16, 147–163. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354067X10361394.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P. (2013). Rewriting the language of creativity: The five A’s framework. Review of General Psychology, 17, 69–81. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029528.Google Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P. (2017a). Creativity in craft. In Kaufman, J. C., Glăveanu, V. P., & Baer, J. (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Creativity in Different Domains (pp. 616–632). New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P. (2017b). From fantasy and imagination to creativity: Towards both a “psychology with soul” and a “psychology with others.” In Wagoner, B., Bresco, I., & Awad, S. H. (Eds.), The Psychology of Imagination: History, Theory and New Research Horizons (pp. 175–189). Charlotte, NC: Information Age.Google Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P., Gillespie, A., & Valsiner, J. (Eds.). (2014). Rethinking Creativity: Contributions from Social and Cultural Psychology. New York: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glăveanu, V. P., & Kaufman, J. C. (in press). Creativity: A historical perspective. To appear in Kaufman, J. C. & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.), Cambridge Handbook of Creativity. New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Gough, H. G. (1979). A creative personality scale for the Adjective Check List. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 1398–1405. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.37.8.1398.Google Scholar
Gruber, H. E. (1988). The evolving systems approach to creative work. Creativity Research Journal, 1, 27–51.Google Scholar
Guilford, J. P. (1950). Creativity. American Psychologist, 5, 444–454.Google Scholar
Guilford, J. P. (1956). The structure of intellect. Psychological Bulletin, 53, 267–293. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0040755.Google Scholar
Guilford, J. P. (1967). The Nature of Human Intelligence. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Guilford, J. P. (1987). Creativity research: Past, present and future. In Isaksen, S. G. (Ed.), Front of Creativity Research: Beyond the Basics (pp. 33–65). New York: Bearly.Google Scholar
Hennessey, B. A., & Amabile, T. M. (2010). Creativity. Annual Review of Psychology, 61, 569–598. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100416.Google Scholar
Hoff, E. V., Carlsson, I. M., & Smith, G. J. W. (2012). Personality. In Mumford, M. D. (Ed.), Handbook of Organizational Creativity (pp. 241–270). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Karwowski, M., Gralewski, J., & Szumski, G. (2015). Teachers’ effect on students’ creative self-beliefs is moderated by students’ gender. Learning and Individual Differences, 44, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2015.10.001.Google Scholar
Kaufman, A. S. (2009). IQ Testing 101. New York: Springer.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C. (2016a). Creativity 101 (2nd ed.). New York: Springer.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C. (2016b). Creativity and mental illness: So many studies, so many wrong conclusions. In Plucker, J. A. (Ed.), Creativity and Innovation: Theory, Research, and Practice (pp. 199–204). Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., & Baer, J. (2004). The amusement park theoretical (APT) model of creativity. Korean Journal of Thinking and Problem Solving, 14, 15–25.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., & Baer, J. (2005). The Amusement Park Theory of creativity. In Kaufman, J. C. & Baer, J. (Eds.), Creativity across Domains: Faces of the Muse (pp. 321–328). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., & Baer, J. (2012). Beyond new and appropriate: Who decides what is creative? Creativity Research Journal, 24, 83–91. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2012.649237.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., Baer, J., Cole, J. C., & Sexton, J. D. (2008). A comparison of expert and nonexpert raters using the consensual assessment technique. Creativity Research Journal, 20, 171–178. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400410802059929.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., Baer, J., Cropley, D. H., Reiter-Palmon, R., & Sinnett, S. (2013). Furious activity vs. understanding: How much expertise is needed to evaluate creative work? Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 7, 332. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034809.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., & Beghetto, R. A. (2009). Beyond big and little: The four c model of creativity. Review of General Psychology, 13, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013688.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J. C., & Glăveanu, V. P. (in press). A review of creativity theories: What questions are we trying to answer? To appear in Kaufman, J. C. & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.), Cambridge Handbook of Creativity. New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Kim, K. H. (2011). The APA 2009 Division 10 debate: Are the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking still relevant in the 21st century? Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 5, 302–308. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021917.Google Scholar
Lee, C. S., Huggins, A. C., & Therriault, D. J. (2014). A measure of creativity or intelligence? Examining internal and external structure validity evidence of the Remote Associates Test. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8, 446–460. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036773.Google Scholar
Mason, J. H. (2003). The Value of Creativity: The Origins and Emergence of a Modern Belief. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.Google Scholar
McCrae, R. R. (1987). Creativity, divergent thinking, and openness to experience. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 1258–1265. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.52.6.1258.Google Scholar
McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T. (1987). Validation of the five-factor model of personality across instruments and observers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 81–90. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.52.1.81.Google Scholar
Mednick, S. A. (1962). The associative basis of the creative process. Psychological Review, 69, 220–232. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0048850.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mendelsohn, G. A. (1976). Associative and attentional processes in creative performance. Journal of Personality, 44, 341–369. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1976.tb00127.x.Google Scholar
Merrotsy, P. (2013). A note on Big-c creativity and little-c creativity. Creativity Research Journal, 25, 474. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2013.843921.Google Scholar
Negus, K., & Pickering, M. (2004). Creativity, Communication and Cultural Value. London: Sage.Google Scholar
Nusbaum, E. C., Silvia, P. J., & Beaty, R. E. (2014). Ready, set, create: What instructing people to “be creative” reveals about the meaning and mechanisms of divergent thinking. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8, 423–432. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036549.Google Scholar
Osborn, A. (1953). Applied Imagination. New York: Scribner’s.Google Scholar
Osborn, A. (1963). Applied Imagination: Principles and Procedures of Creative Thinking. New York: Scribner’s.Google Scholar
Paulus, P. B., & Brown, V. R. (2007). Toward more creative and innovative group idea generation: A cognitive‐social‐motivational perspective of brainstorming. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 1, 248–265.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Plucker, J. A., & Beghetto, R. A. (2004). Why creativity is domain general, why it looks domain specific, and why the distinction doesn’t matter. In Sternberg, R. J., Grigorenko, E. L., & Singer, J. L. (Eds.), Creativity: From Potential to Realization (pp. 153–167). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.Google Scholar
Plucker, J. A., Beghetto, R. A., & Dow, G. T. (2004). Why isn’t creativity more important to educational psychologists? Potentials, pitfalls, and future directions in creativity research. Educational Psychologist, 39, 83–96. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep3902_1.Google Scholar
Plucker, J. A., & Makel, M. C. (2010). Assessment of creativity. In Kaufman, J. C. & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Creativity (pp. 48–73). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Pope, R. (2005). Creativity: Theory, History, Practice. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Rhodes, M. (1961). An analysis of creativity. Phi Deltan Kappan, 42, 305–310. www.jstor.org/stable/20342603.Google Scholar
Runco, M. A., & Acar, S. (2012). Divergent thinking as an indicator of creative potential. Creativity Research Journal, 24, 66–75. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2012.652929.Google Scholar
Runco, M. A., & Jaeger, G. J. (2012). The standard definition of creativity. Creativity Research Journal, 24, 92–96. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2012.650092.Google Scholar
Runco, M. A., Millar, G., Acar, S., & Cramond, B. (2010). Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking as predictors of personal and public achievement: A fifty-year follow-up. Creativity Research Journal, 22, 361–368. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2010.523393.Google Scholar
Sawyer, R. K. (2012). Explaining Creativity: The Science of Human Innovation (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Schlesinger, J. (2009). Creative mythconceptions: A closer look at the evidence for the “mad genius” hypothesis. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 3, 62–72. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013975.Google Scholar
Schlesinger, J. (2012). The Insanity Hoax. New York: Shrinktunes Media.Google Scholar
Simonton, D. K. (1999). Creativity as blind variation and selective retention: Is the creative process Darwinian? Psychological Inquiry, 10, 309–328. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965PLI1004_4.Google Scholar
Simonton, D. K. (2012). Taking the US Patent Office creativity criteria seriously: A quantitative three-criterion definition and its implications. Creativity Research Journal, 24, 97–106.Google Scholar
Simonton, D. K. (2014a). More method in the mad-genius controversy: A historiometric study of 204 historic creators. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8, 53–61. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035367.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Simonton, D. K. (2014b). The mad-genius paradox: Can creative people be more mentally healthy but highly creative people more mentally ill? Perspectives on Psychological Science, 9, 470–480. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691614543973.Google Scholar
Skinner, B. F. (1966). An operant analysis of problem solving. In Kleinmuntz, B. (Ed.), Problem Solving: Research, Method, and Theory. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Stein, M. I. (1953). Creativity and culture. Journal of Psychology, 36, 311–322. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1953.9712897.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J. (1985). Beyond IQ: A Triarchic Theory of Human Intelligence. New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J. (1988). A three-facet model of creativity. In Sternberg, R. J. (Ed.), The Nature of Creativity (pp. 125–147). New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J. (1996). Successful Intelligence. New York: Simon & Schuster.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J. (2003). WICS: Wisdom, Intelligence, and Creativity Synthesized. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J. (2018). A triangular theory of creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 12, 50–67.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J., & Grigorenko, E. L. (2001). Guilford’s structure of intellect model and model of creativity: Contributions and limitations. Creativity Research Journal, 13, 295–308. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15326934CRJ1334.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J., Kaufman, J. C., & Pretz, J. E. (2001). The propulsion model of creative contributions applied to the arts and letters. Journal of Creative Behavior, 35, 75–101. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2162-6057.2001.tb01223.x.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J., & Lubart, T. I. (1991). An investment theory of creativity and its development. Human Development, 34, 1–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sternberg, R. J., & Lubart, T. I. (1992). Buy low and sell high: An investment approach to creativity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 1, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.1992.tb00002.x.Google Scholar
Sternberg, R. J., Pretz, J. E., & Kaufman, J. C. (2003). Types of innovations. In Shavinina, L. (Ed.), The International Handbook of Innovation (pp. 158–169). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Taft, R., & Rossiter, J. R. (1966). The Remote Associates Test: Divergent or convergent thinking? Psychological Reports, 19, 1313–1314. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1966.19.3f.1313.Google Scholar
Taylor, C. L. (2017). Creativity and mood disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617699653.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1962). Guiding Creative Talent. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1966). The Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking-Norms-Technical Manual Research Edition-Verbal Tests, Forms A and B-Figural Tests, Forms A and B. Princeton, NJ: Personnel Press.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1969). Prediction of adult creative achievement among high school seniors. Gifted Child Quarterly, 13, 223–229.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1972a). Career patterns and peak creative achievements of creative high school students twelve years later. Gifted Child Quarterly, 16, 75–88.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1972b). Predictive validity of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. Journal of Creative Behavior, 6, 236–252.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1981a). Predicting the creativity of elementary school children (1958–80) – And the teacher who ‘‘made a difference.’’ Gifted Child Quarterly, 25, 55–62.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (1981b). Empirical validation of criterion-referenced indicators of creative ability through a longitudinal study. Creative Child and Adult Quarterly, 6, 136–140.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P. (2008). The Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking Norms-Technical Manual Figural (Streamlined) Forms A and B. Bensenville, IL: Scholastic Testing Service.Google Scholar
Torrance, E. P., & Ball, O. E. (1984). Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking: Streamlined (Revised) Manual, Figural A and B. Bensenville, IL: Scholastic Testing Service.Google Scholar
Wallas, G. (1926). The Art of Thought. London: Jonathan Cape.Google Scholar
Ward, T. B., Smith, S. M., & Vaid, J. (1997). Conceptual structures and processes in creative thought. In Ward, T. B., Smith, S. M., & Vaid, J. (Eds.), Creative Thought: An Investigation of Conceptual Structures and Processes (pp. 1–27). Washington DC: American Psychological Association.Google Scholar
Weiner, R. P. (2000). Creativity and Beyond: Cultures, Values, and Change. New York: State University of New York Press.Google Scholar
Welsh, G. S., & Barron, F. (1959). Barron–Welsh Art Scale. Mountain View, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.Google Scholar
Westwood, R., & Low, D. R. (2003). The multicultural muse: Culture, creativity and innovation. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 3, 235–259. https://doi.org/10.1177/14705958030032006.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×