"Defining Creativity: Don’t We Also Need to Define What Is Not Creative?" by Dean Keith Simonton (2016)

Summary

This academic paper argues that defining creativity adequately requires a simultaneous definition of what is not creative. The author introduces a three-parameter model to assess the potential creativity of an idea: its initial probability, its final utility, and the creator's prior knowledge of that utility. Using these parameters, the paper proposes a multiplicative definition of personal creativity and, crucially, identifies seven distinct ways in which an idea can be uncreative, categorising them by high and low initial probability. By exploring these "failures" of creativity, the author demonstrates the limitations of simpler, two-criterion definitions and emphasises the essential role of considering prior knowledge in a comprehensive understanding of creativity and its absence.