In this article, Boldt considers decisions teachers must make about the value of children's writing as a form of play in primary classrooms. She offers a brief history of the framing of this question at 1966 Dartmouth Conference on English, focusing particularly on the perspective of Jimmy Britton. She highlights the relationship between Britton's…

This paper explores connections between Kirton's Adaption-Innovation Theory of cognitive style and Koestler's bisociative theory of the creative act. The three Kirton factor/traits (sufficiency of originality, efficiency, and rule/group conformity) are integrated into Koestler's conceptual framework of the creative act which stresses the creation…

This article proposes that transcendence, the mystical nature of creativity, is not only sequential but a subset of the evolutionary process. Deliberate application of the principles of Darwin's theory is seen as speeding and improving the creative process for both individuals and groups. The importance to creative thinking of randomness processed…

This article, which is speculative in outlook and emerges from an extended literature review on this subject, takes as its basic premise the notion that the idea of "creativity"--whether in relation to literacy, schooling or the economy, is constructed as a series of rhetorical claims. These rhetorics of creativity emerge from the contexts of…

This paper offers an extension of Graham Wallas' model of the creative process. It identifies periods of problem solving, incubation, and growth with specific points of initial idea inception, creative frustration, and illumination. Responses to creative frustration are described including denial, rationalization, acceptance of stagnation, and new…

Problems arise when creativity is viewed in terms of personality or cognitive traits considered apart from products produced. The encouragement of high level achievement within particular disciplines and subject matter is suggested to develop creativity. (DF)

What are creative people like? There is evidence that four personality traits appear to differentiate more creative from less creative people: devotion to work, independence, drive for originality, and flexibility. Creative people do not have higher intelligence quotients (IQs) or get better school grades than others--in fact, no cognitive…

This paper outlines cognitive processes underpinning creative ability, considers their development, and discusses the creative potential of the individual at various life stages. Creativity is viewed as an outcome of self-directed transformational activity. The roles of fantasy and imagination are discussed, as is the contrast between public and…

Discusses the reciprocal, interactionist activity of creativity. Suggests an explanation of how specific characteristics of personality, cognitive style, and situation develop creativity. Notes that these factors are interrelated--none is sufficient for creativity by itself--and that creativity can be explained only by a model that encompasses all…

This paper discusses links among the process of creativity, symbolization, and learning. The importance of symbolization in thinking, in school learning, in child development, and in the behavior of creative learners is stressed. (DB)

An interactionist model of creative behavior is proposed, combining elements of the personality, cognitive, and social psychology perspectives on creativity. The model considers the interplay of factors including antecedent conditions, creative behavior, consequences, the individual, cognitive style/ability, personality traits, contextual…

This article examines the relationship of cognitive processing and creativity and argues that educational interventions contribute to the development of creative thinking skills when they provide requisite knowledge structures and stress controlled application of these processes in solving progressively more complex problems. (DB)

The intent of this article is to describe the basic processes used by the child in order to create and imagine; to explain the significance of objects for encouraging creativity, imagination, and intellectual growth; and to show how creative thinking is nurtured using the world of objects. Five reasons are advanced to support the claim that the…

Creativity can be distinguished from intelligence, but there is no consensus on how the recognized stages of the creative act can be taught. The steps to rational thinking can and should be intentionally taught and rationality may prepare a base for unexpected creative insights. (DB)

This paper examines cognitive capacities and dispositional characteristics that contribute to creative problem solving, including relationship generation skills, expertise, adaptability, and wisdom. The paper argues that programs for gifted and talented students should develop the beliefs, values, and motives that will encourage students to apply…