What does the research tell us about human creativity?
James Kaufman is a remarkably insightful creativity researcher. In this episode we dive deep into what the research tells us about human creativity.
James gives us some foundational definitions as a starting point to exploring creativity more deeply. In the most basic sense, creativity is something which is both novel and useful, or has elements of novelty and usefullness.
James helps us understand the relevance of creativity in today's world. Namely, creativity helps us resolve trauma, discover meaning in life and cultivate a meaningful life, bring joy to our work, connect with others, and more...
James describes the research landscape and how different researchers study human creativity. Here he covers creative people, processes, environments, and products. Costa chimes in to share the practitioner view.
How do we measure creativity and what does it predict about our lives? James takes us into the assessments commonly used to measure creativity, and talks about what these tests help us understand.
While scores like the SAT or others show differences by socio-economic status, measures of creativity don't show any. Creativity is natural and we all have it.
Why is non-genius level creativity important? We all get why the world needs masterpieces and cures to diseases and so on, but what's the value of everyday creativity?
James shares his passion for musical theater and its lessons for creativity at large.
