And All That Jazz

A creativity researcher's take on the highs and lows of pop culture and the arts.

James C. Kaufman is a creativity researcher and Associate Professor of Psychology at California State University of San Bernardino. See full bio

November 30, 2009

A new CD demonstrates creativity under constraints

Howard Gardner is known for many things (such as his theory of multiple intelligence), but he's done quite a bit of interesting work. Read More

November 2, 2009

15 Minutes of Flame

Although this post will be written as a result of the various comments from my last post, it's not a response to my last post. The comments offered some interesting thoughts and arguments that did indeed get me to reflect and modify my point of view. Read More

October 31, 2009

Why does our society hate children?

There are some situations where it is necessary to take a child into the public eye. One that's on my mind right now (because we're traveling quite soon) is plane rides. I have seen the most egregious behavior here - from adults. Read More

October 29, 2009

Fight Logical Fallacies -- Eat More Halloween Candy!

How many readers have had Halloween candy taken away from them by their parents? Perhaps the candy was unwrapped or homemade. Even worse, entire bags might be confiscated. Why this nightmare? All because of the stupid Argumentum ad Metum. Read More

October 23, 2009

Gandhi, Bill Gates, and... Hannibal Lecter?: Creativity and Emotional Intelligence in all the Wrong Places

Constructs such as creativity and emotional intelligence are often considered part of Positive Psychology. They are seen, usually, as desirable and good traits. Yet there are many ways that people may use these abilities selfishly, or even, perhaps, evilly. Read More

October 20, 2009

The List: Who will be remembered 100 years from now?

Who will be remembered in 100 years? I offer my own take on which current legends will be immortal and whose works may fade with time. Read More

October 16, 2009

Who will be remembered 100 years from now? Part One

Who will still be remembered in 100 years? Paris Hilton, Miley Cyrus, the Gosselins, and Megan Fox may dominate the news, but will barely be footnotes in 20 years (if not, I will change species). In this first of two blogs on this topic, I will start the discussion of which living people truly belong to the ages. Read More

October 9, 2009

Channeling Dr. House as I teach Critical Thinking

My wife and I are addicted to House (on DVD, so don't say anything about the current season). In trying to find a reason why I should be able to count my House-watching time as being productive, I came across the reason that Dr. House would be a fantastic psychology professor (except for the whole drug abuse/harassment thing). Read More

October 3, 2009

Why is Bath and Body Works so nice to my wife?

Why is Bath and Body Works so nice to my wife? The easy returns, the heavy duty coupons.... Do they just love her, or could the answer be found in Robert Cialdini's Influence? Read More

September 28, 2009

That's DR. Winnie to you: A New Child Star Stereotype

Danica McKellar earned her Ph.D. in Mathematics from UCLA, has written several books promoting math for children, and has an Erdos Number of 4. Best known for The Wonder Years, she remains an actress and model and has a Bacon Number of 2. And what have YOU done recently? Read More

Books by James C. Kaufman, Ph.D.

Creativity 101 (Psych 101)

Essentials of Creativity Assessment (Essentials of Psychological Assessment)

The International Handbook of Creativity

The Psychology of Creative Writing

Applied Intelligence

Creativity Basics

Even those of us not in explicitly creative fields must come up with new ideas and insights in order to move ahead. How can we shake up our thinking patterns?

Go to the Creativity Basics page for more on Creativity including:

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Everyday Creativity

How to start living creatively and reap the benefits.

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Books by James C. Kaufman, Ph.D.

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