HISTORICAL
PERSPECTIVES AND
THEORIES OF CREATIVITY
Exploring the evolution of creativity
and its relevance in education
OBJECTIVES
• Understand the historical evolution of
creativity.
• Assess the development of creativity in
education.
• Evaluate major theories of creativity.
• Apply the insights to educational and
professional contexts
ACTIVITY
CREATIVITY ACROSS TIME AND
CULTURES
• Observe the given creative component from
different historical periods / cultures
Identify key features of each component
Discuss how each component reflect
creativity in their times / cultures
Construct a short time line with key examples
of creativity from history
Compare the creativity of each of these
periods with present perspective
HISTORICAL TIMELINE OF
CREATIVITY
• 1. Ancient Times: Creativity as Divine Inspiration
• 2. Middle Ages: Creativity as Craftsmanship
• 3. Renaissance: Creativity as Individual Genius
• 4. Enlightenment: Creativity and Rationality
• 5. Romantic Era: Emotional Expression
• 6. Industrial Revolution: Innovation and Practicality
• 7. Early 20th Century: Psychological Process
• 8. Mid-20th Century: Cognitive and Social Phenomena
• 9. Late 20th Century: Interdisciplinary and Multicultural
• 10. 21st Century: Creativity in the Digital Age
CREATIVITY IN
EDUCATION
• Traditional Education: Focus on rote
learning.
• Modern Education: Emphasis on
critical thinking and creativity.
• Integration across disciplines:
STEM, arts, and beyond.
THEORIES OF
CREATIVITY: OVERVIEW
• Psychoanalytical Theory: Unconscious
desires drive creativity.
• Mental Illness Theory: Links creativity to
mental health conditions.
• Psychoticism Theory: Traits like risk-taking
enable creativity.
• Humanistic Theory: Creativity as self-
actualization.
• Addiction Theory: Intense focus linked to
creativity.
PSYCHOANALYTICAL
THEORY
• - Key Idea: Creativity stems from
unconscious desires.
• - Proponent: Sigmund Freud.
• - Application: Art therapy and
emotional expression.
• - Critique: Limited empirical evidence;
focus on unconscious processes.
MENTAL ILLNESS
THEORY
• - Key Idea: Creativity linked to mental health
conditions.
• - Examples: Van Gogh, Sylvia Plath.
• - Application: Support for neurodiverse
individuals.
• - Critique: Risk of stigma and
overgeneralization.
THEORY OF
PSYCHOTICISM
• - Key Idea: Creativity linked to traits like
risk-taking and unconventional thinking.
• - Proponent: Hans Eysenck.
• - Application: Encouraging divergent
thinking.
• - Critique: Controversial linkage to
personality traits.
HUMANISTIC THEORY
• - Key Idea: Creativity driven by self-
actualization.
• - Proponents: Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow.
• - Application: Encouraging autonomy and
intrinsic motivation.
• - Critique: Difficult to measure self-
actualization.
ADDICTION THEORY
• - Key Idea: Creativity linked to obsessive focus
or substance use.
• - Examples: Intense focus on creative projects.
• - Critique: Limited research; overemphasis on
negatives.
SUMMARY AND
DISCUSSION
• - Creativity has evolved from divine inspiration
to scientific study.
• - Each theory provides unique insights but has
limitations.
• - Discuss: How can these theories be applied in
education or work?
