Tradition and Innovation: Exploring and Transforming Conceptual Structures

Abstract

On one attractive view creativity is exploration of conceptual structures or spaces, defined by a descriptive vocabulary and a grammar, and generative rules for producing admissible outcomes (Boden, 1994b; Langley et al., 1987). To be creative is to explore and perhaps transform a conceptual space or conceptual structure. Discoveries, scientific, artistic, practical or any other are simply results accumulated in a creative enterprise. Although one does not always need special mental qualities to make discoveries, ideas that make an impact and therefore really merit the title are unlikely to arise without open-minded exploration of the boundaries of the conceptual spaces. And although serendipity exists and luck helps, novelties tend to frequent flexible and persistent explorers.

Let us call this the explore-and-transform-paradigm of creativity and discovery. It seems to be winning the day, and rightly so, especially because it makes it plain that creativity presupposes rather than opposes tradition. There is, however, something which could be called Boden’s problem. Although conceptual structures are crucial for “the identification and evaluation of creativity”, there is, as Boden puts it, no simple or uniform measure for their “depth” ascross all types of creative activity.