Homo creativus: an overview of research on creativity

Abstract

Creativity – the ability to generate productions that are both original and relevant to the context in which they occur – is examined here. In the introduction, a psychological conception of creativity is presented with an overview of scientific work on creativity, organized according to a conception in 7 “C”s: the characteristics of the creative person, the creative process, creative collaboration, the context conducive to creativity, the nature of creative productions, the adoption or consumption of creative works, and the curriculum favoring the development of creativity. In a second part, illustrations of research concerning the different “C”s will be described. Directions for future work on creativity are specified.