Definition
The terms “creativity,” “problem solving,” and “feeling” are used in scholarly writing of psychology in ways similar to that employed in popular writing but with some refinement. Derived from the Latin creatus “to make or produce,” creativity is defined as “the production of effective novelty.” The word production implies that some act or action is involved. Thus within the field of cognition, the act of creation or the creative process is studied. However, other psychological orientations such as the “creative person,” the “creative product,” and the “creative environment” are also investigated. Central to each orientation however, is the assumption that the novelty produced is useful and meaningful. Thus for example, the creation of a scientific idea may be considered useful, the creation of an artistic work meaningful.
Within the cognitive tradition, the term “problem-solving”...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Aldous, C. R. (2009). The genesis of new ideas: Models, feeling and solutions. In B. Matthews & T. Gibbons (Eds.), The Process of research in education: A festschrift in honour of John P. Keeves (pp. 338–366). Adelaide, SA: Shannon Research Press.
Amabile, T. M. (1996). Creativity in context: Update to the social psychology of creativity. Boulder, CO: Westview.
Cropley, A. J. (2001). Creativity in education and learning a guide for teachers and educators. London: Kogan Page.
Damasio, A. R. (1994). Descartes’ error: Emotion reason and the human brain. London: Papermac.
Finke, R. A., Ward, T. B., & Smith, S. M. (1992). Creative cognition: Theory, research and application. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Guilford, J. P. (1967). Creativity: Yesterday, today and tomorrow. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 1(1), 3–14.
Horstman, J. (2010). The scientific American brave new brain. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Mumford, M. D. (2003). Where have we been, where are we going? taking stock in creativity research. Creativity Research Journal, 15(2 & 3), 107–120.
Shaw, M. P. (1989). The Eureka process: A structure for the creative experience in Science and Engineering. Creativity Research Journal, 2, 286–298.
Sternberg, R. J. (2005). Creativity or creativities. International Journal of Human Computer Studies, 63, 170–382.
Taylor, C. W. (1988). Various approaches to and definitions of creativity. In R. J. Sternberg (Ed.), The nature of creativity: Contemporary psychological perspectives (pp. 99–121). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Wallas, C. (1926). The art of thought. New York: Harcourt brace.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this entry
Cite this entry
Aldous, C.R. (2012). Creativity, Problem Solving, and Feeling. In: Seel, N.M. (eds) Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1428-6_741
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1428-6_741
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-1427-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-1428-6
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law