creativity flow and the psychology of discovery

Creative people have complex personalities.

Be included in the cultural domain to which it belongs.

Pass muster with the experts of the field.

Be couched in terms that are understandable to others.

It is a systemic rather than an individual phenomenon.ģ Criteria For An Idea to Be Considered “ Creative”

Creativity does not happen inside people’s heads but in the interaction between a person’s thoughts and a sociocultural context.

But I pick and choose ideas to include at my discretion. Jonas Salk calls this attitude “being a good ancestor.The following book summary is a collection of my notes and highlights taken straight from the book. If I love my grandchildren, or the work I have accomplished, or the causes I have championed, then I am bound to feel a part of the future even after personal death. But if I have identified with some more enduring entities, my survival will provide a sense of connection, of continuity, that keeps despair at bay. Erikson thought that the perspective of an older person is based on a new definition of identity, which could be summarized in the sentence “I am what survives me.” If toward the end of life I conclude that nothing of myself is likely to survive, despair is likely to take over. Strength here takes the form of that detached yet active concern with life bounded with death, which we call wisdom…” The notion of integrity connotes the ability to tie together, to relate to others outside oneself. “In Erikson’s words: “A meaningful old age…serves the need for that integrated heritage which gives indispensable perspective on the life cycle. Because of this freedom, original connections that would be at first rejected by the rational mind have a chance to become established.”Ĭreativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention Free from rational direction, ideas can combine and pursue each other every which way. But intentionality does not work in the subconscious.

When we think consciously about an issue, our previous training and the effort to arrive at a solution push our ideas in a linear direction, usually along predictable or familiar lines. Something similar to parallel processing may be taking place when the elements of a problem are said to be incubating.

In a parallel system such as in advanced computer software, a problem is broken up into its component steps, the partial computations are carried out simultaneously, and then these are reconstituted into a single final solution. In a serial system like that of an old-fashioned calculator, a complex numerical problem must be solved in a sequence, one step at a time. “The distinction between serial and parallel processing of information may also explain what happens during incubation.

Creativity flow and the psychology of discovery