Creativity and Reason in Cognitive Development - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0521605040 ISBN 13: 9780521605045

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2006

Synopsis

To what extent do creativity and imagination decline in childhood? What factors might influence a decline? Theories of cognitive development show only uni-directional progress (although theorists may disagree whether such progress occurs steadily in small continuous improvements or comes in stages separated by plateaus during which developmental gains are consolidated). Declines in levels of skill are quite uncommon, yet many have observed just such an unusual pattern with regard to the development of creativity and of the imagination. Is there something about the development of one kind of thinking that undermines imaginative and creative thinking? Is it perhaps the process of schooling itself, with its focus on the acquisition of knowledge and the production of correct (rather than imaginative) answers, which promotes this decline? This book explores these questions from a variety of perspectives. Essays from psychologists and educators from diverse backgrounds discuss the relationships among creativity, reason, and knowledge.

About this title

About the Authors

James C. Kaufman is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the California State University at San Bernardino, where he is also the director of the Learning Research Institute. He received his B.A. in Psychology from the University of Southern California and his Ph.D. from Yale University in Cognitive Psychology, where he worked with Robert J. Sternberg. Kaufman's main area of expertise is creativity. With Sternberg and Jean Pretz, he developed the propulsion model of creative contributions, outlined in The Creativity Conundrum (Psychology Press, 2002). He coined 'the Sylvia Plath Effect', based on an analysis of female poets, in a paper in Journal of Creative Behavior, and his recent work on poets dying young has been featured in the New York Times, NPR, BBC, CNN, and newspapers and magazines across the world. His other books include International Handbook of Creativity, Intelligence, Applied Psychology and Free Will, Creativity Across Domains: Faces of the Muse, Gender Differences in Mathematics, and The Evolution of Intelligence.

John Baer (Ph.D.) is Professor of Educational Psychology at Rider University. He earned his B.A. at Yale, where he double majored in psychology and Japanese Studies and graduated magna cum laude. He received his Ph.D. from Rutgers in developmental and cognitive psychology. He won the American Psychological Foundation's Berlyne Prize for his research on creativity in 1993, and in 1997 the Eighth National Conference on College Teaching and Learning presented Dr Baer with its annual Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Technology. He has published seven books, including Creativity and Divergent Thinking: A Task-Specific Approach; Creative Teachers, Creative Students; and Creativity Across Domains: Faces of the Muse (with James C. Kaufman).

Edition details

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521605040
• ISBN 13: 9780521605045
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 388
• Editor: Kaufman James C.