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Encyclopedia of Creativity, Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship pp 391–402Cite as

Creativity Definitions, Approaches

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Synonyms

Concept development, trends

Definition

Approaches to creativity definitions are conceptual trends on the way from the myths to the scientific reflection of creativity within the science of creativity.

Introduction: Creativity as a Phenomenon

The phenomenon of creativity and real-life people doing creative work seems simple at first glance. When people see someone who is unusually original, they say that this person is “creative.” However, when one tries to describe what “creative” means in order to teach others to be creative or to research the phenomenon, it becomes difficult. The reason of the difficulty is that creativity surfaces in so many ways. Additionally, creativity is psychological. This is a challenge in itself because creativity is a complex multifaceted phenomenon. No wonder, Parkhurst noted “the confusion and lack of consensus” in the issue of defining creativity (see Parkhurst 1999). This entry is a summary of various approaches in defining creativity that...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. International Academy of Genius, 500 Glenwood Cir, #410, Monterey, CA, 93940, USA

    Dr. Andrei G. Aleinikov

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  1. Dr. Andrei G. Aleinikov
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Correspondence to Andrei G. Aleinikov .

Editor information

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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Aleinikov, A.G. (2013). Creativity Definitions, Approaches. 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_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3858-8_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-3857-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-3858-8

  • eBook Packages: Business and Economics

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