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Creative work: The case of Charles Darwin
Abstract
The evolving systems approach (ESA) addresses the need for direct study of the creative process in recognized creators at work, in contrast to indirect methods, such as those used in psychometric studies. The ESA emerged from H. E. Gruber's prolonged study of Charles Darwin's manuscripts, especially the notebooks he kept after the Beagle voyage. Gruber's interviews with J. Piaget about the latter's creative processes, as well as many doctoral dissertations, also helped shape the authors' approach. Using Gruber's (1974/1981) study of Darwin, the authors describe some facets of creative work identified in the course of their work. Among these are networks of enterprise, ensembles of metaphors, insights, and evolving belief systems. Although the ESA emphasizes cognitive processes, social, affective, and esthetic aspects of the case are not neglected. Each creative case is unique, otherwise the individual would not meet the criterion of originality. Uniqueness does not mean isolation; people who differ must and do work together. The integration of all these facets into a plausible system for each creator remains the authors' central task.
... Whilst at the earliest stages of creative development metacognitive judgements are absent or localized and focused on a specific task or product, at the most advanced phases of creativity, metacognitive judgements grow to progressively take into consideration an entire oeuvre of work. As they are part of a whole system of self-beliefs, these metacognitive judgments about the quality of a creator's own work have relevant implications for the development of a creator's self (Beghetto and Karwowski 2017), and they become intertwined with what is known as networks of enterprise (Gruber 1988;Gruber and Wallace 2001). ...
... Therefore, metacognition is also employed in the process of selling an idea during interaction with gatekeepers, such as in peer review in science or in the interactions with arts and literary critics. As some experts reach higher levels of eminence, they get involved in broader networks of enterprise (Gruber and Wallace 2001). Some of them become polymaths and transfer their creative skills across domains (Root-Bernstein and Root-Bernstein 2004). ...
... That is, they start to think about their intellectual legacy. Unfortunately, but for the information taken from autobiographical excerpts or case studies (Csikszentmihalyi 1996;Gardner 1993;Gruber and Wallace 2001), not much is known about the process of creative self-assessment among eminent creators. Table 1 summarizes how metacognition evolves at the four levels of creative development. ...
The goal of this article is to review work on mind wandering, metacognition and creativity in order to consider their relationship with cognitive flexibility. I introduce a model of the role that mind wandering and metacognition have in the generation and exploration of novel ideas and products in the creative process. I argue that managing the interaction between metacognition and mind wandering is the main role of cognitive flexibility in creativity. Furthermore, I claim that balancing the influence of metacognition during the generation and exploration of pre-inventive structures is a quintessential part of creativity, probably in almost any domain. Thus, I advance a general framework that can be applied to understanding how creators monitor and think about their own cognition when they engage in the generation and exploration of ideas. Additionally, I discuss the evolution of controlled and spontaneous cognition and metacognitive judgements during the development of a creative person.
... An emerging view takes a hybrid approach to the knowledge-creativity question. Gruber's Evolving Systems Approach (ESA) is one account that draws elements from both the evolutionary and foundational perspectives (see Gruber and Wallace 2001). ESA grew out of Gruber's prolonged interest in the creative works of Charles Darwin and Jean Piaget. ...
... It is quite possible that creativity represents an important link that helps explain this phenomenon. Gruber and Wallace (2001) outlined how fi gurative language plays an important role in the creative process (see, e.g., Gruber & Wallace, 2001), and this includes not only metaphor, but other tropes as well, including irony and hyperbole. Rhetorical fi gures force a message recipient to create a conceptual connection as opposed to having the connection literally provided to him or her. ...
... It is quite possible that creativity represents an important link that helps explain this phenomenon. Gruber and Wallace (2001) outlined how fi gurative language plays an important role in the creative process (see, e.g., Gruber & Wallace, 2001), and this includes not only metaphor, but other tropes as well, including irony and hyperbole. Rhetorical fi gures force a message recipient to create a conceptual connection as opposed to having the connection literally provided to him or her. ...
Understanding creativity has been one of the most vexing challenges facing psychologists over the past 50 years. Michelangelo's sculpture of David, Einstein's Th eory of Relativity, and Mozart's Piano Concertos inspire awe as to their creativity. But more mundanely, creativity is also evident in the toil of an individual working to customize their pickup truck, or the clever way a mother uses hair spray to remove an ink stain. Th ese examples are so disparate, what connects them? What defi nes something as creative? Creativity is diffi cult to make sense of, but essential to human functioning. Creativity is ubiquitous in consumer behavior. In everything from vehicles and homes to cloth-ing and a mundane fi x for a stain, creativity permeates the consumption realm. Yet few attempts have been made to translate basic observation into theoretical treatise, and even fewer attempts have been made to empirically document the role of creativity in the consumer behavior literature. Th e purpose of this chapter is to outline a psychology of consumer creativity. Our discussion will integrate considerations of creativity from the perspectives of the product, the process, the person, and the environment, and will consider the implications of each within the consumption realm. Th e topic of creativity remains an open frontier in consumer psychology. CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND Creativity is oft en defi ned as an outcome (a work, a product, an idea) that is both novel and appro-priate to the given context or circumstance from which it arises. As basic as this defi nition appears, a modern understanding of creativity has been long in coming, and at various points emphasis has been on the creative person, the creative process, and the creative environment. To appreciate the modern conceptualization of creativity and how its various facets interrelate, it is useful to trace a brief history of creativity research.
... Awareness of a very powerful visual thinking strategy emerged from the work of developmental psychologist Howard Gruber (1974Gruber ( , 1978Gruber ( , 1989Gruber & Wallace, 2001). He studied the products of high achievers who accomplished impressive work, often in STEM fields. ...
This interdisciplinary, conceptual analysis addresses the nature and benefits of artistic processes in learning andwork. While recognizing various forms of artistry, the emphasis is on visual-spatial thinking. The benefits of thiskind of thinking in academic and professional activities include the simplification of massively complex writing,improvement of psychological functioning, and the magnification of creative work in various professions,especially in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Visual-spatial thinking also is astrength that often helps twice-exceptional individuals overcome their learning difficulties. Several thinking andlearning strategies are explored, including visual data animation, concept cartooning, visual metaphor, andmusical translation of written material. Some ways that visual-spatial thinking can help overcome the problemsgenerated by dogmatic school reform also are scrutinized.
... Csikszentmihalyi (1988) stressed that if one's full attention is absorbed by too narrow interest, there would not be enough left over for new information and solutions. Finally, according to the network of enterprise model, creative work is nondeterministic (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). Given that the flow of creative work is continuous and branching toward newly identified possibilities, each action is only loosely connected to each other and has the potential to lead to a novel direction in every interaction. ...
The present study examines two self-regulation traits, grit and curiosity, in predicting creative achievement in an adult sample (N = 522). Grit has been related to achievement in various domains, and although prior empirical work failed to find associations with everyday creative activities in adolescent and young adult samples, theoretically it is relevant to long-term creative achievement (which requires persistence). Curiosity supports creative achievement through positive judgments of novelty and an intrinsic motivation to approach instead of avoid uncertainty, and both novelty and uncertainty are central to the creative process. Results showed that the perseverance dimension of grit positively predicted creative achievement, whereas the consistency of interests dimension was negatively related to creative achievement. Additionally, five curiosity dimensions predicted creative achievement above grit. In particular, thrill seeking predicted creative achievement in both art and science; deprivation sensitivity positively predicted creative achievement in art. Our research suggests that, instead of a narrow focus on consistency of interest, creative achievement benefits from curiosity.
... Episodic memory may also play a relevant role in long-term networks of enterprise (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). These networks of enterprise trigger a real life Zeigarnik effect, that is, they propel a creator to complete what she or he understands as an unfinished task. ...
... From the perspective of the studies on scientific cognition, Gruber and Wallace (2001) point out that the very nature of Darwin's cognitive processes leading to the construction of his ideas has been taken as object of analysis. For instance, Gruber's (1978Gruber's ( , 1981 pioneering writings on creativity in scientists make Charles Darwin a paradigmatic case, scrutinizing his notebooks. ...
... Many creators report that completing their most important work takes a significant amount of time. Evidence in favor of the protracted nature of creativity comes not only from the 10-year rule in the study of expertise and exceptional achievement (Hass & Weisberg, 2015), but also from numerous case studies of eminent creators, which show that they are involved in long-term networks of enterprise, such as did Darwin when creating its theory of evolution (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). According to Gruber and Wallace, the psychological dynamism of the creative networks of enterprise illuminates how the motivation to finish an incomplete task -the Zeigarnik effectoperates in real life. ...
Mind wandering plays a significant role in the psychological construction of possible worlds. It has a functional connection with pretend play, autobiographical planning, and creativity. Because of its association with pretend play, mind wandering is a precursor of creativity and imagination. Additionally, mind wandering is involved in the preparation for alternative futures during autobiographical planning. Thus, it has a strong connection with autonoetic awareness and episodic memory. Mind wandering is also related to idea generation during the incubation stage of the creative process. Moreover, during long-term endeavors, creative individuals adopt a disposition of mindful mind wandering. By advancing research on mind wandering, we will gain more knowledge about the multiple ways human beings transcend their current experience, in addition to open new inquiries about the relationship between consciousness, memory, and creativity.
... Many creators report that completing their most important work takes a significant amount of time. Evidence in favor of the protracted nature of creativity comes not only from the 10-year rule in the study of expertise and exceptional achievement (Hass & Weisberg, 2015), but also from numerous case studies of eminent creators, which show that they are involved in long-term networks of enterprise, such as did Darwin when creating its theory of evolution (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). According to Gruber and Wallace, the psychological dynamism of the creative networks of enterprise illuminates how the motivation to finish an incomplete task -the Zeigarnik effectoperates in real life. ...
Mind wandering plays a significant role in the psychological construction of possible worlds. It has a functional connection with pretend play, autobiographical planning, and creativity. Because of its association with pretend play, mind wandering is a precursor of creativity and imagination. Additionally, mind wandering is involved in the preparation for alternative futures during autobiographical planning. Thus, it has a strong connection with autonoetic awareness and episodic memory. Mind wandering is also related to idea generation during the incubation stage of the creative process. Moreover, during long-term endeavors, creative individuals adopt a disposition of mindful mind wandering. By advancing research on mind wandering, we will gain more knowledge about the multiple ways human beings transcend their current experience, in addition to open new inquiries about the relationship between consciousness, memory, and creativity.
... Human creativity researchers do not use the same arguments. When scholars study eminent creators such as Charles Darwin [21] or Pablo Picasso [19], it is with the hope that we might learn from how such eminent people created -not with the expectation that we are all potential geniuses with appropriate prompting. As a result, perhaps, we focus more on potential than on capacity. ...
При всех различиях в изучении творческих и инновационных процессов у животных и человека существует и определенное сходство, которое можно лучше понять при интеграции обоих подходов. Оба подхода направлены на изучение творческих способностей, но исследователи животных предпочитают концепцию творческих задатков, а исследователи человека - творческого потенциала. В статье рассмотрены следствия, вытекающие из различий в исследовательских подходах, а также то, чем данные подходы могут обогатить друг друга.На основании обзора литературы по проблеме исследования творческих процессов у человека и животных выявлены основные положения, которые позволяют исследователям человека показать путь от возможностей (потенциала) к способностям, а исследователям животных - от задатков к способностям. Исследователи животных уже рассматривают индивидуальные различия между ними и, как результат, показывают, как возможности могут опосредовать связь между задатками и способностями. Если работа в этом направлении будет продолжена, то может быть выявлено то, каким образом индивидуальные различия связаны с высокими творческими и инновационными проявлениями.
... Inspired by the "in-process" drawing studies conducted by Beittel (1972Beittel ( , 1973, andCsikszentmihalyi (1972, 1976), Brucie Garrett Bowman chose to investigate the art making of one local, but prominent artist in Austin, Texas, to learn about the nature of his creative processes. Related literature advancements to the previous research reviewed by the author includes cognitive case studies conducted by Franklin (1989), Gardner (1983Gardner ( , 1993Gardner ( , 1997, Gardner and Nemirovsky (1991), Gruber (1974, 1980, 2001, Sullivan (2005), and Wallace (1982Wallace ( , 1985Wallace ( , 1989. ...
... Metaphorical thought experimentation can both catalyze and suppress creativity in science. Examples of catalysis include the admirable tendency of great thinkers to distill the essence of complex scientific problems and to synthesize complex variables through the power of visualmetaphorical insight, which has been at the core of many creative scientific breakthroughs (Gruber, 1978;Gruber & Wallace, 2001;Hallyn, 2000;Harmon, 1994;Harrington, 1996;Holton, 1996;Miller, 1978Miller, , 1986Miller, , 1996. ...
... Such novelty in creativity for the pursuit of useful ideas has become important for maintaining our quality of life. Einstein or Darwin's initially abstract work has proved to have practical significance (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). Individuals and societies are inextricably linked through this creative process, each contributing to the other's development and wellbeing. ...
This paper explores the relationship between the creative process and social intelligence. Creativity has established value in modern, knowledge-based economies but is complex, multi-faceted and often group-led. Social intelligence is one method for navigating this complexity using intuition, communication, collaboration and empathy. A 'creative vortex' model (originally derived from PhD thesis research) has been proposed. This forms the basis of theoretical framework from which further empirical research on social intelligence and the creative process can be conducted.
... According to analysts of scientific thought processes, metaphor is a highly creative conceptual tool that allows scientists to build bridges from the known to the unknown. It enables them to develop productive theories that lead to scientific progress (Arecchi, 1996;Feist, 2006;Gruber, 1974;Gruber & Wallace, 2001;Hallyn, 2000;Harmon, 1994;Holton, 1996;Larson, 2014). Metaphors can trap minds in singular ways of viewing the world but they also can serve as catalysts for insight generation and creative pattern perception. ...
... For example, in education it affects innovation, in business it becomes entrepreneurship, in mathematics it is problemsolving and in music it is performance and composition (Reid and Petocz, 2004). Most recent general works on creativity agree that multiple components must converge in a confluence for creativity to occur (Amabile, 1996;Csikszentmihalyi, 1999;Gruber & Wallace, 2001;Sternberg, 1999). Amabile defines creativity as the confluence of intrinsic motivation, domain-relevant abilities and creativity-relevant skills while both Gruber and Csikszentmihalyi use systems models in order to understand it. ...
Pink (2005) discusses six critical competencies or senses required for the conceptual age. They are design, story, symphony, empathy, play and meaning. This paper will focus on mainly on design, within arts and design education, exploring relationships between systems thinking, multidisciplinarity, critical thinking and creativity from the perspective of Industrial Design (ID). Initially, the paper presents a brief historical approach to the evolution of 'systems thinking'. Afterwards, multidisciplinarity is discussed in relation to design disciplines and examples illustrate the use of systems thinking in multidisciplinary design projects at different scales.
... If beliefs are both cognitively and socially constructed, then we have some basis for influencing them to enhance students' passion for creativity. However, this is not as simple as it sounds because of the complexity of dynamic, intricate, and interactive processes involved in creativity (Gruber & Wallace, 2001). Besides, creativity appears to be stochastic (Simonton, 2004). ...
Whereas existing conceptions of giftedness and creativity, assessment tools, and models espoused in contemporary psychology are all grounded in the West, there are different ways to look at talent development. This study investigated Shona artists' talent attributions with a view to generate theoretical ideas that inform talent development from an African perspective. Using a grounded theory study approach informed by 20 Shona stone sculptors of Zimbabwe, the study endeavored to generate a mid-range theory of how Shona artists conceptualized the origins and development of talent in their art domain. Grounded theory suggested a dynamic and interactive process model (DIPM) from an indigenous cultural perspective that explains how Shona artists' talent attributions help to propel a field of art. The DIPM posits that creativity emerges from dynamic and interactive processes activated or reactivated in interactions evoking one's unique experiences, cultural consciousness, and domain specific consciousness and realized through practice and experience. The DIPM is based on the artists' belief systems; these belief systems are recommended as the focus of interest in future research to understand creativity in art. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
... Thus the terminology of the theory did not come ready made, but was the result of a knowledge-formatting process of rephrasing and trying out different metaphors for the problem that he was trying to explain (cf. Gruber & Wallace, 2001). ...
This article is about the role of metaphor in scientific knowledge formation and reasoning. These issues are studied by means of an example of the theory of evolution through natural selection. The premise is that the theory of evolution contains a set of problems regarding metaphor. A second premise is that these problems have to be handled in one way or another when trying to learn, explain, or discuss the theory. How metaphor plays a role in Darwin's writings is analyzed through examples taken from On the Origin of Species. Which metaphors are used by Darwin and which problems do they solve and raise, respectively? It is shown how Darwin uses a variety of metaphors, and that he grapples with this issue. The findings are discussed in terms of the implications for teaching evolutionary theory. Some inherent difficulties in learning the theory of evolution, and more generally abstract complex scientific knowledge, are discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed93: 535–547, 2009
... Metaphorical thought experimentation can both catalyze and suppress creativity in science. Examples of catalysis include the admirable tendency of great thinkers to distill the essence of complex scientific problems and to synthesize complex variables through the power of visualmetaphorical insight, which has been at the core of many creative scientific breakthroughs (Gruber, 1978;Gruber & Wallace, 2001;Hallyn, 2000;Harmon, 1994;Harrington, 1996;Holton, 1996;Miller, 1978Miller, , 1986Miller, , 1996. ...
Ghassib's (2010) paper is an interesting historical and philosophical discussion on the topic of knowledge production and a productivist industrial model in science. As I see it from the point of view of education, a weakness of the paper relates to the lack of discussion of the notion of creativity in science. The title includes the word 'creativity' and yet he does not explicitly address the nature of creativity in science, its relevance to science education or the teaching of gifted and talented children. To have done so may have made his account more relevant to this journal's readers.
... The data analysis procedures include: the use of the "Evolving Systems Approach" developed by Gruber and Wallace (2001), the "Stream of Consciousness Dialogues" and the drawing analysis procedures utilized by Beittel (1972Beittel ( , 1973 , "Grounded Theory" as described by Strauss and Corbin (1998), a nd the creation of a "Phenomenological Narrative" as utilized in the studies of creative individuals conducted by Franklin (1989), and Wallace and Gruber (1989). ...
The cyclic nature of studies on talent development (TD), in the spirit of use-inspired research, suggests a systematic, reciprocal process, from more basic research to an increasing applied focus, with a focus on developmental diversity, specificity, and complexity, integrating biological, cognitive-affective, developmental, sociocultural levels of analysis from a developmental science perspective. This chapter provides an overview and critique of what has been done in recent decades that fit the delineation of six types of research on TD delineated in Chap. 3. First, it summarizes a survey of research between 2010 and 2020 to obtain a glimpse of the efforts along the line and offer a tentative critique. Second, it further explores how well current TD studies have addressed developmental diversity and specificity at an empirical level, including the appropriateness of research designs and methods. Third, it asks how well, at the conceptual level, the accumulated studies are coordinated in a way that allow integration across different levels of analysis to capture the level of developmental complexity as the developmental science framework stipulates. Fourth, it compares advances in TD research with those in developmental criminology and developmental psychopathology, highlighting how insights from these fields of research can inspire and inform TD research.
This chapter examines methodologies in the field of research on talent development (TD), highlighting the adoption of a balanced approach that incorporates both variable-centered and person-centered methods. This chapter emphasizes the primacy of theoretical assumptions and conceptualizations in determining what methodologies are appropriate, rather than the other way around. Conversely, methodological choices, once made, can shape our understanding of developmental processes and facilitate social interventions, as well as bias the research design toward particular findings while blind to other possibilities. This chapter underscores the multi-method approach that can reveal different aspects of phenomena under investigation, thus challenging the assumption of human development as following fixed universal norms. This chapter advocates for an evolving epistemology of TD and human excellence, which, when fully ingrained in the methodology, can move the field forward, enhancing methodological innovations and emphasizing the normative and value-driven nature of TD research. It will become a truly use-inspired line of inquiry aiming to help individuals realize their potential and lead fulfilling lives.
This chapter provides an overall of the history of theories and research on talent development (TD). It first reviews and defines a series of terms (e.g., giftedness, precocity, polymathy) closely associated to TD; the terminology reveals implicit belief systems regarding the nature of talent and TD. Then, this chapter goes over the intellectual and research history from Galton to contemporary inquiries into the nature and nurture of talent, approached from differential, educational, cognitive, developmental, and sociocultural perspectives, with an increasing appreciation of diversity and complexity of TD involved. Three major theoretical models of TD, component models, developmental process models, and developmental systems models are identified as guiding frameworks for research efforts in the past decades. Finally, this chapter summarizes the state of knowledge on TD with a set of consensuses that can guide future research on TD and human excellence. It is argued that in conclusion that all research should go beyond the fruitless nature-nurture debate and the underlying dichotomous thinking in favor of natural endowment or environmental influences. Instead, all research should pay close attention to the dynamic interplay of task-related, social, and developmental processes, which can illuminate both the role of natural endowment and sociocultural contributions.
The main aim of the article is to present the genesis and main assumptions of the theory The Evolving Systems Approach to Creative Work by Howard E. Gruber as well as an account of qualitative research into the experiences of academic teachers in the creative didactic work. In these studies the ESA theory was used both for the preparation of the research concept and for the analysis and interpretation of the obtained research results. 13 academic teachers participated in the research, introducing to the education of students for at least 5 years: pioneering adaptations, creative modifications, their own original didactic solutions including: concepts, strategies, methods, techniques and tools, workshops, students’ assessment systems. In the research there were applied the multiple, descriptive case studies, there were carry out semi-structured interviews and analysis of documents (publications, pictures). In the research was carried out a vertical analysis which resulted in the creation of an individual model of creative work for each research participant as well as a horizontal-cross-sectional analysis for all cases. On the grounds of many regularities found in studied cases the author of article presents proposition of systemic model of creative didactic work concerning examined innovators.
This chapter concentrates on the evolution of a psychology of creativity. In doing so, we track thinking from early attempts at understanding creativity from Sir Francis Galton and Cesare Lombroso through to Freud and the psychoanalytic view of creativity. We then turn our attention to the rationalist responses from psychology, addressing Guildford’s early contributions, psychometric testing for creativity and the rise of the behaviourists. Personality approaches are examined before we move on to creative thinking, computational models and simulations of the creative mind. We then explore possible biological and biochemical foundations of creativity before moving outward to motivation and social psychological approaches. We finish this section by looking at processes of group creativity and the effect the environment has on creative people’s work.
Creativity refers to the potential to produce novel ideas that are 'task-appropriate and high in quality. Creativity in a societal context is best understood in terms of a dialectical relation to intelligence and wisdom. In particular, intelligence forms the thesis of such a dialectic. Intelligence largely is used to advance existing societal agendas. Creativity forms the antithesis of the dialectic, questioning and often opposing societal agendas, as well as proposing new ones. Wisdom forms the synthesis of the dialectic, balancing the old with the new. Wise people recognize the need to balance intelligence with creativity to achieve both stability and change within a societal context.
This paper explores the place of teaching in the landscape of creativity. It draws on analyses of interview narratives from dedicated teachers from various educational levels and teaching contexts; none had been singled out as creative by their institutions. Asked when teaching had been experienced as a creative process, rather than describing specific incidents, the teachers told of projects and goals that spanned a semester or year. Daily activities contributed to the projects, making creativity in teaching everyday creativity in both the technical and literal senses. Interview protocols were analyzed into meaning units and categorized into themes. Some themes were similar to those in studies of creative teachers and teaching, though no prior study explicitly put forward all of them. The interviewed teachers described practices previously suggested for nurturing student creativity. Most themes echoed features found in creativity studies of various other domains. Two unique features were the double nature of intrinsic motivation and the nature of the creative “product.”
This article presents a new theory of talent development, evolving complexity theory (ECT), in the context of the changing theoretical directions as well as the landscape of gifted education. I argue that gifted education needs a new foundation that provides a broad psychosocial basis than what the notion of giftedness can afford. A focus on talent development rather than giftedness should be based on a theory of talent development that is truly developmental, treating the developing person as an open, dynamic, and adaptive system, changing oneself adaptively while interacting with environmental opportunities and challenges. To introduce ECT, I first delineate the meaning and significance of four dimensions or “parameters” of talent development undergirding this new theory: domain, person, development, and culture. I then describe how ECT explicates the developmental processes and transitions as the result of human adaptations to environmental opportunities and challenges. More specifically, ECT uses the constructs of characteristic and maximal adaptation to elucidate how domain, person, development, and culture jointly shape a particular line of talent development, and how cognitive, affective, and social processes interact to push and sustain a critical transition from characteristic adaptation to maximal adaptation, eventually leading to high-caliber performance and creative productivity. I finally discuss the theoretical contributions and practical utilities of ECT for future research and practice.
The following is a qualitative portrait of a creative teacher and her teaching process. Over a period of six months, five interviews were conducted with the teacher before, during, and following a university course in teacher education on instructing diverse learners. Additional interviews were conducted with six students at the beginning and end of the course and with the teacher's husband following the course. Additional data sets include classroom observations revealed in field notes, personal memos, and course materials. The overarching themes represented constructs involving intense and thorough course preparation, teacher-student connections, and reflective teaching. Sub-themes guiding the process of creative teaching emerged including constraints placed on preparation and reflective teaching, an awareness of self and students within the process of preparation and connection, feedback from colleagues and students guiding the connection and reflective teaching, and the values and goals formed from personal history and philosophy of life shaping all three major themes. This case study of creative teaching possesses characteristics resembling creative acts in other domains (e.g., art, literature, physics, economics) and presents a model for the education of future teachers.
The paper first sketches a psychological reconstruction of the logic of Darwin's discovery. Characteristic mental analogies can be revealed in the structure of the theory with the emphasis on small changes and constant change replacing catastrophes. Another important aspect is the motivating forces in the personality of Darwin and their relationship to his personal fate. From a perspective of present day psychology, Darwin was an extreme systematizer. One could place him along the much debated autism continuum exactly due to his taxonomic passion. At the same time, the emphasis on constant change connects the taxonomy with dynamicity. The paper also touches upon the rival theories of Darwin's illness. It concentrates on the theory of Bowlby emphasizing the role of attachment dramas in intellectual achievements of the 19th century.
In the domain of creativity, many different phenomena have been labeled creative. One strategy for bringing order to the variety has been to distinguish different categories of creativity. This article proposes that multiple dimensions, rather than categories, provide a more heuristic approach for capturing the variety. By dimensionalizing the criteria that define discrete categories (Big C vs. little c, for example), assembling various dimensions suggested by others scattered in the literature (degree of organization within a domain, for example), and identifying new dimensions (structure in initial project representation, for example), we achieve a more solid foundation for describing, analyzing, comparing, and theorizing about the varieties of the creative process. There is no claim that the dimensions are independent; rather, their relationships to one another pose interesting empirical and conceptual questions. The dimensional approach suggests new perspectives on laboratory measures of creativity, new ways of looking at the development of creativity in children, and a middle path in the tension between those who hold that the making of each creative work is unique and those whose work rests on the assumption of universals in the creative process.
The following is a qualitative portrait of a creative teacher and her teaching process. It has been written as chronological narrative using an evolving systems approach as a methodology for an instrumental case-study design. The creative teacher is a 47-year-old female with over 20 years experience with elementary, secondary, college, and university students. Five interviews were conducted with the teacher before, during, and following the course. Data sets include classroom observations revealed in field notes, documents such as course materials and audiotaped interviews. Two interviews were conducted with six students at the beginning and end of the course. One interview was conducted with the teacher's husband at the end of the course. The research context was an undergraduate university classroom of 146 preservice teachers studying how to plan curriculum and instruction for diverse learners. All interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. The overarching themes represented constructs involving intense and thorough course preparation, teacher-student connections, and reflective teaching. Overlapping subthemes guiding the process of creative teaching emerged including constraints placed on preparation and reflective teaching, an awareness of self and students within the process of preparation and connection, feedback from colleagues and students guiding the connection and reflective teaching, and the values and goals formed from personal history and philosophy of life shaping all three major themes. The teacher's personality acted as a conduit for expressing her creativity in the classroom. Her creative process was directed by her personality to choose the materials and methods of developing curriculum and instruction, and to guide her in her reflective teaching. This revelatory case example of creative teaching possesses characteristics resembling studies of creative giants, however presents a model of the process of creative teaching that can be inspiring to all educators.
To demystify creative work without reducing it to simplistic formulas, Doris Wallace and Howard Gruber, one of the world’s foremost authorities on creativity, have produced a unique book exploring the creative process in the arts and sciences. The book’s original`evolving systems approach’ treats creativity as purposeful work and integrates cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and motivational aspects of the creative process. Twelve revealing case studies explore the work of such diverse people as William Wordsworth, Albert Einstein, Jean Piaget, Anais Nin, and Charles Darwin. The case study approach is discussed in relation to other methods such as biography, autobiography, and psychobiology/ Emphasis is given to the uniqueness of each creative person; the social nature of creative work is also treated without losing the sense of the individual. A final chapter considers the relationship between creativity and morality in the nuclear age. In addition to developmental psychologists and cognitive scientists, this study offers fascinating insights for all readers interested in the history of ideas, scientific discovery, artistic discovery, artistic innovation, and the interplay of intuition, inspiration, and purposeful work.
To demystify creative work without reducing it to simplistic formulas, Doris Wallace and Howard Gruber, one of the world’s foremost authorities on creativity, have produced a unique book exploring the creative process in the arts and sciences. The book’s original`evolving systems approach’ treats creativity as purposeful work and integrates cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and motivational aspects of the creative process. Twelve revealing case studies explore the work of such diverse people as William Wordsworth, Albert Einstein, Jean Piaget, Anais Nin, and Charles Darwin. The case study approach is discussed in relation to other methods such as biography, autobiography, and psychobiology/ Emphasis is given to the uniqueness of each creative person; the social nature of creative work is also treated without losing the sense of the individual. A final chapter considers the relationship between creativity and morality in the nuclear age. In addition to developmental psychologists and cognitive scientists, this study offers fascinating insights for all readers interested in the history of ideas, scientific discovery, artistic discovery, artistic innovation, and the interplay of intuition, inspiration, and purposeful work.
The author examines some of the seemingly contradictory facts related to interruption of behavior and discusses experimental and theoretical devices for co-ordinating them. To better the situation, it is suggested that more attention be given to the cognitive changes involved, since treatment in terms of motivational variables only has proved inadequate. It is held that there is a crucial need for studies "that explore the relations between objective variables and the intervening variables represented by Lewin's life space." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
- Darwin
Darwin's tree of nature and other images of wide scope.
- Gruber