Personal characteristics of highly creative women: a systematic review

Abstract

Men and women have the potential to develop creative products; however, historically, women’s achievements are undervalued by guardians of socially valued fields. Considering the importance of scientific narrative, we carried out a systematic review of publications from the last 10 years about recognized creative women to identify the origin of the studies and characteristics related to creativity. Based on five eligibility criteria, we identified 18 articles, most of them published by researchers from universities in the United States and Spain. Through content analysis, we described the following categories of characteristics: motivation, unconventionality, multiculturalism, talent, ability to take risks, charisma, passion, hard work, paradox, resilience, and independence. The results corroborate attributes of creative personality models and peculiarities verified in theories about talented women. We discuss how some characteristics which are present or absent in this review reinforce the perception of the rarity of female success.