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Creativity 101
Praise for the First Edition:
" Kaufman uses a variety of examples from a wide range of fieldsOto demonstrate the broadness of the construct and its appeal to a diverse audience. He usesOan appealing, personal way of "speaking" to the audience through the use of anecdotes, asides, and personal experiencesOhe emphasizes a positive approach and openness to ideas that will be inviting to young scholars [and] cites recent research that is timely and engaging. Most chapters include information on implications, importance, and usefulness of the informationOIn short, this book is a very comprehensive treatment of a complex topic in an engaging format. . . "
- PsychCritiques
"Faced with a plethora of material and sometimes confusing information [about creativity] I foundO Creativity 101 a great relief. It offers an immensely enjoyable read while at the same time offering a thoroughly satisfying overview from an academic point of viewOI found myself learning and having fun at the same time."
n Gifted and Talented International
What is creativity? How does it work? How does it flourish in individuals and organizations? Now in its second edition, this bestselling introductory text--written by one of the world's leading experts on the psychology of creativity--is completely updated and expanded to reflect the tremendous growth in this field. In a redesigned, reader-friendly format, the text surveys the latest theories and research to provide key information about what we know (and don't know) about creativity including its many definitions and measures. It addresses how creativity operates on individual and social/environmental levels, and the effects and outcomes of the creative mind.
This much-praised book is an ideal brief text for courses on creativity in psychology, education, business, and other fields, as well as cross-disciplinary seminars and programs in creativity studies.
New to the Second Edition:
Completely updated and expanded with new theories and research
Restructured to enhance flow of information and ease of use
New chapters on measuring creativity, creativity and mental health, creative environments, how creativity is perceived by self and society, and its positive and negative aspects
Coverage of new models and frameworks
Expanded coverage of creativity and motivation, mental illness, and mood; history of creativity research; the creative process; and neuroscientific theories and approaches
Thorough reconceptualization of creativity and personality
New content on differences between creativity, imagination, and innovation
Expanded coverage of creativity assessment
Key Features:
Surveys theory, research, and applications of creativity concisely and accessibly
Written in an engaging style by a world-renowned creativity expert
Ideal for courses on creativity in psychology, education, business, and other fields, as well as cross-disciplinary seminars
" Kaufman uses a variety of examples from a wide range of fieldsOto demonstrate the broadness of the construct and its appeal to a diverse audience. He usesOan appealing, personal way of "speaking" to the audience through the use of anecdotes, asides, and personal experiencesOhe emphasizes a positive approach and openness to ideas that will be inviting to young scholars [and] cites recent research that is timely and engaging. Most chapters include information on implications, importance, and usefulness of the informationOIn short, this book is a very comprehensive treatment of a complex topic in an engaging format. . . "
- PsychCritiques
"Faced with a plethora of material and sometimes confusing information [about creativity] I foundO Creativity 101 a great relief. It offers an immensely enjoyable read while at the same time offering a thoroughly satisfying overview from an academic point of viewOI found myself learning and having fun at the same time."
n Gifted and Talented International
What is creativity? How does it work? How does it flourish in individuals and organizations? Now in its second edition, this bestselling introductory text--written by one of the world's leading experts on the psychology of creativity--is completely updated and expanded to reflect the tremendous growth in this field. In a redesigned, reader-friendly format, the text surveys the latest theories and research to provide key information about what we know (and don't know) about creativity including its many definitions and measures. It addresses how creativity operates on individual and social/environmental levels, and the effects and outcomes of the creative mind.
This much-praised book is an ideal brief text for courses on creativity in psychology, education, business, and other fields, as well as cross-disciplinary seminars and programs in creativity studies.
New to the Second Edition:
Completely updated and expanded with new theories and research
Restructured to enhance flow of information and ease of use
New chapters on measuring creativity, creativity and mental health, creative environments, how creativity is perceived by self and society, and its positive and negative aspects
Coverage of new models and frameworks
Expanded coverage of creativity and motivation, mental illness, and mood; history of creativity research; the creative process; and neuroscientific theories and approaches
Thorough reconceptualization of creativity and personality
New content on differences between creativity, imagination, and innovation
Expanded coverage of creativity assessment
Key Features:
Surveys theory, research, and applications of creativity concisely and accessibly
Written in an engaging style by a world-renowned creativity expert
Ideal for courses on creativity in psychology, education, business, and other fields, as well as cross-disciplinary seminars
- GenresPsychologyNonfiction
368 pages, Paperback
First published June 10, 2003
19 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 5, 2016
If you like lots research and science with your learning, this book has it in spades without being too dense.
I read this book as research for my own writing projects. It gave me exactly what I needed -- solid science about creativity and useful frameworks for teaching creativity to others.
Reading this book was like having my own research assistant collecting the best data for me.
Kaufman clearly is familiar with the current creativity findings and theories. He shares several frameworks for analyzing and developing creativity.
He shares interesting studies and examples to illustrate the main findings.
Some people have complained about the writing style. His references are included inline with the sentence. This does break things up a bit. Footnotes would have been nice.
I was pleasantly surprised by the readability overall. I expected very dense academic writing. So my expectations were low going in.
It's not you're easiest most entertaining read. It's a science summary book. Keep that in mind.
It's well organized, allowing you to find the stuff that interests you most. I only read the first half since that's what related to my current projects. It was worth the price just for those first few chapters.
Whether you're a scientist, artist or business manager, this book will provide valuable insights. I recommend just reading the chapters that relate to your interests.
I read this book as research for my own writing projects. It gave me exactly what I needed -- solid science about creativity and useful frameworks for teaching creativity to others.
Reading this book was like having my own research assistant collecting the best data for me.
Kaufman clearly is familiar with the current creativity findings and theories. He shares several frameworks for analyzing and developing creativity.
He shares interesting studies and examples to illustrate the main findings.
Some people have complained about the writing style. His references are included inline with the sentence. This does break things up a bit. Footnotes would have been nice.
I was pleasantly surprised by the readability overall. I expected very dense academic writing. So my expectations were low going in.
It's not you're easiest most entertaining read. It's a science summary book. Keep that in mind.
It's well organized, allowing you to find the stuff that interests you most. I only read the first half since that's what related to my current projects. It was worth the price just for those first few chapters.
Whether you're a scientist, artist or business manager, this book will provide valuable insights. I recommend just reading the chapters that relate to your interests.
February 13, 2012
This book was really inexpensive so I picked it up from Amazon, it touches on the subject of Creativity (duh!) and what defines it.
What makes a person creative? What makes one creative person different from another?
I really liked some of the sections, like the one on Historiometrics, pioneered by Simonton. He defined creative people based on their biographies and factual information. In one of his studies, he divided the lives of 10 composers (Bach, Mozart, Chopin...) into five-year periods and measured each composer's productivity based on works and themes. Here's what he found: The composers who wrote the best music, wrote the most music. Quality is related to quantity.
As a writer I found that interesting. That means: the more we write, the better writer we become.
There was also discussed the correlation between creativity and mood. Does being in a bad mood make you a more creative person? The findings are still inconclusive but there are basis for both theories.
Why did I give the book only three stars?
It's not the content, it's the way the content is laid out. Instead of adding footnotes, he often places the references right in the paragraphs, leading to long, hard to read paragraphs. I found myself skipping points because of the excessive citations.
Other than that, an interesting read.
What makes a person creative? What makes one creative person different from another?
I really liked some of the sections, like the one on Historiometrics, pioneered by Simonton. He defined creative people based on their biographies and factual information. In one of his studies, he divided the lives of 10 composers (Bach, Mozart, Chopin...) into five-year periods and measured each composer's productivity based on works and themes. Here's what he found: The composers who wrote the best music, wrote the most music. Quality is related to quantity.
As a writer I found that interesting. That means: the more we write, the better writer we become.
There was also discussed the correlation between creativity and mood. Does being in a bad mood make you a more creative person? The findings are still inconclusive but there are basis for both theories.
Why did I give the book only three stars?
It's not the content, it's the way the content is laid out. Instead of adding footnotes, he often places the references right in the paragraphs, leading to long, hard to read paragraphs. I found myself skipping points because of the excessive citations.
Other than that, an interesting read.
November 26, 2012
I found James Kaufman's Creativity 101 to be an extremely difficult book to read. Mainly, because of the writing style and or way he chose to write in citations. I would often find myself losing my train of thought while reading because i was reading through the incredibly long citations.
I feel like the information provided was quite good and kept me well informed. It goes in depth about the mechanisms of being creative and how people are able to be creative in certain paths.
This book seems like it would only be suitable for certain areas of a creative course of study. This is one of the reasons why I rated it three out of five stars because in the wrong setting this book could be short and the need for another book for more coverage of creativity would be need. Would I recommend it? Possibly, considering what course it is being used for.
I feel like the information provided was quite good and kept me well informed. It goes in depth about the mechanisms of being creative and how people are able to be creative in certain paths.
This book seems like it would only be suitable for certain areas of a creative course of study. This is one of the reasons why I rated it three out of five stars because in the wrong setting this book could be short and the need for another book for more coverage of creativity would be need. Would I recommend it? Possibly, considering what course it is being used for.
September 5, 2012
I found this on Amazon recently for a good price and decided to give it a shot. The premise sounded interesting, and the Introduction was well-written. However, the further along I got, the more frustrating the references became. As with another reviewer, the references are written all throughout the book not as footnotes, but as full citations. Because of this reason, I didn't finish Creativity 101. I was only able to get through a third of it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews