The Cambridge Handbook of Creativity

James C. Kaufman · Robert J. Sternberg

Aug 2010 · Cambridge University Press

About this ebook

The Cambridge Handbook of Creativity is a comprehensive scholarly handbook on creativity from the most respected psychologists, researchers and educators. This handbook serves both as a thorough introduction to the field of creativity and as an invaluable reference and current source of important information. It covers such diverse topics as the brain, education, business, and world cultures. The first section, 'Basic Concepts', is designed to introduce readers to both the history of and key concepts in the field of creativity. The next section, 'Diverse Perspectives of Creativity', contains chapters on the many ways of approaching creativity. Several of these approaches, such as the functional, evolutionary, and neuroscientific approaches, have been invented or greatly reconceptualized in the last decade. The third section, 'Contemporary Debates', highlights ongoing topics that still inspire discussion. Finally, the editors summarize and discuss important concepts from the book and look to what lies ahead.

About the author

James C. Kaufman, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the California State University at San Bernardino, where he directs the Learning Research Institute. Dr Kaufman's research focuses on the nurturance, structure and assessment of creativity. He is the author or editor of more than 150 publications, including sixteen books either published or in press. These books include Creativity 101 (2009), Essentials of Creativity Assessment (with Jonathan Plucker and John Baer, 2008) and The International Handbook of Creativity (with Robert J. Sternberg, 2006). His research has been featured on CNN, NPR and the BBC and in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and New Yorker. Kaufman is a founding co-editor of the official journal for the American Psychological Association's Division 10, Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. He is also the associate editor of Psychological Assessment and the Journal of Creative Behavior, the editor of the International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving and the series editor of the Psych 101 series. He received the 2003 Daniel E. Berlyne Award from APA's Division 10, the 2008 E. Paul Torrance Award from the National Association of Gifted Children, and the 2009 Early Career Research Award from the Western Psychological Association.

Robert J. Sternberg, Ph.D., is Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Psychology and Education at Tufts University. He is also Honorary Professor of Psychology at the University of Heidelberg. He was previously IBM Professor of Psychology and Education in the Department of Psychology, Professor of Management in the School of Management, and Director of the Center for the Psychology of Abilities, Competencies, and Expertise at Yale. His Ph.D. is from Stanford, and he holds 11 honorary doctorates. Sternberg was the 2003 President of the American Psychological Association and is the past President of the Eastern Psychological Association. He is currently President of the International Association for Cognitive Education and Psychology and President-Elect of the Federation of Associations of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. The central focus of his research is on intelligence, creativity and wisdom, and he also has studied love and close relationships as well as hate. He is the author of about 1,200 journal articles, book chapters, and books, and he has received more than $20 million in government and other grants and contracts for his research, conducted in five different continents. He has won more than two dozen awards for his research. Sternberg has been listed in the APA Monitor on Psychology as one of the top 100 psychologists of the twentieth century and is listed by the ISI as one of its most highly cited authors in psychology and psychiatry.