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Encyclopedia of Creativity, Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship pp 409–420Cite as

Creativity in Invention, Theories

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Synonyms

Change management; Creativity techniques; Innovation; Originality; Problem-solving; Radical invention

Creativity and Invention

Creativity is a capacity or trait, inherited or acquired, implying a more or less unique ability to apprehend new ideas and insights (Taylor 1988). Departing from standard definitions of creativity, the concept lies at the heart of invention. In Western history, it has thus been viewed as problematic, even heretical. Since God created the world out of nothing, creatio ex nihilo, any attempts to similarly create inventions out of nothing was conceit (Tatarkiewicz 1980; Perkins 1988). In research into the sources of creativity, individual characteristics are occasionally combined with environmental influences. Likewise are particular situations of insight, described by their unexpectedness and sudden effortlessness, often combined with the stressing of preparations as in knowledge accumulation (Gruber and Davis 1988; Finke 1995). The view that...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departmant of Arts and Cultural Sciences, Lund University, Biskopsgatan 7, 223 62, Lund, Sweden

    Prof. Thomas Kaiserfeld

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  1. Prof. Thomas Kaiserfeld
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Correspondence to Thomas Kaiserfeld .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Information Systems & Technology, Management, School of Business, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA

    Elias G. Carayannis

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Kaiserfeld, T. (2013). Creativity in Invention, Theories. In: Carayannis, E.G. (eds) Encyclopedia of Creativity, Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3858-8_397

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3858-8_397

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

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