Creativity

Essential Reads Chosen by the editors

The Ten Coolest Therapy Interventions, Honorable Mentions & Wrap Up

By Ryan Howes, Ph.D. on March 11, 2010 in In Therapy

You're cooler just for knowing the coolest interventions in psychotherapy. Here it is, the entire Top Ten list along with a few techniques that almost made it and some concluding thoughts. Read More

Find a Therapist

Search for a mental health professional near you.

Find Local:

The Latest

The Ten Coolest Therapy Interventions, Honorable Mentions & Wrap Up

By Ryan Howes, Ph.D. on March 11, 2010 in In Therapy

You're cooler just for knowing the coolest interventions in psychotherapy. Here it is, the entire Top Ten list along with a few techniques that almost made it and some concluding thoughts. Read More
The Power of 'Then'

By Liane Gabora, Ph.D. on March 10, 2010 in Mindbloggling

The uniquely human capacity to imagine beyond the present

Read More
I'm trying not to read too much into this

By Madora Kibbe on March 10, 2010 in My Empty Nest

This posting is meant to be humorous, but all kidding aside, doesn't it sometimes seem like the most innocuous things conspire to keep us from doing our work or dare I say it fulfilling our destiny? Don't ask me, ask my oven. Read More
Emotional Shifts in “Parenthood”

By Jeremy Clyman on March 9, 2010 in Reel Therapy

Last week marked the premiere of NBC's highly anticipated family drama "Parenthood," featuring Gilmore Girls' Lauren Graham and Six Feet Under's Peter Krause. At first glance this show is a more melodramatic version of "Modern Family," and strives for an equal ratio of laughs and tears. From grandfather to grandson, each member of this extended, quirky family feeds the often dysfunctional, ultimately loving family dynamic. Most shows that sprout from sit-com land quickly fall to the middle of the pack, becoming a little too boring and forgettable. I predict that this show will stay afloat with success...because of the presence of emotional shifts. Read More
A very brief defense of multi-tasking

By Paul Bloom, Ph.D on March 9, 2010 in How Pleasure Works

Many experts complain that people do too many things at the same time. We are told to quit with all the unnecessary web-browsing, texting, twittering, music-listening, eating, and drinking. The key to productivity, competence, and even happiness is to focus on one thing and do it right. Read More
Cool Art Therapy Intervention #7: Creating Together

By Cathy Malchiodi on March 9, 2010 in The Healing Arts

There is a distinctive kind of creative energy generated when people work in a group to create art. Call it synergy or collective flow; whatever you call it, it changes our perceptions of who we are and shows us how to get by with a little creative help from our friends. Read More
How Creative Flow is Like Sex

By Susan K. Perry, Ph.D. on March 8, 2010 in Creating in Flow

"Writing is like making love. Don't worry about the orgasm, just concentrate on the process." That useful advice, credited to author Isabel Allende, introduces the idea that how you make love has commonalities with your journey toward creative expression. Consider... Read More
Evolutionary Psychology and The Oscar Race: The Final Lap

By David Lundberg Kenrick on March 7, 2010 in The Caveman Goes To Hollywood

2009 was a great year for movies, and the contenders for Best Picture dealt with many facets of the classical evolutionary themes. Which movie should win?

Read More
How sound skews the Academy Awards

By George Michelsen Foy on March 6, 2010 in Shut Up and Listen!

The loud explosions in Oscar nominees Avatar and Hurt Locker shake our bodies as well as our ears. The primal reflex that results from those vibrations awakens ancient panic instincts--and makes us more likely to be thrilled by films that use them Read More
Dealing with Worry-Based Fantasies and Daydreams

By Amy Fries on March 5, 2010 in The Power of Daydreaming

“Daymare” is an old-fashioned word straight out of Charles Dickens. The word is not in use much anymore, but it certainly captures the stressful aspect of frightening and worry-based visions that plague many people on a regular basis. Read More
Dance? I'd rather have my fingernails pulled out!

By Peter Lovatt, PhD on March 5, 2010 in Dance Psychology

Hundreds of people have told me why they don't, or wont dance. Here are the top two reasons why people don't dance. Read More
Recruiting for Creativity

By Mark Batey, Ph.D. on March 5, 2010 in Working Creativity

If truth be told, most organizations are pretty pathetic at identifying "talent" when recruiting. What's more, is that they are usually even worse at assessing people specifically for creative potential or talent.
Avoid the pitfalls.. get creative to recruit creative people! Read More
And the Oscar Goes to...Our Brains?

By Dr. David Pincus on March 3, 2010 in The Chaotic Life

Fractals fractals everywhere, it really makes you think. Yet one more place where fractal patterns have turned up appears to be within the structure of Hollywood films - and just in time for the Oscars! Read More
Cool Art Therapy Intervention #8: Mask Making

By Cathy Malchiodi on March 2, 2010 in The Healing Arts

Masks are worn for performance, entertainment, disguise, concealment, or protection. They have been around since ancient times and have been used in ceremony, storytelling, and dramatic enactment. Making a mask invites you to explore the persona you reveal or conceal from the world. It's why it's Cool Art Therapy Intervention # 8. Read More
Thelonious Monk---Bebop Pioneer, and Bipolar? My Interview with Professor Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Thelonious Monk, The Life and Times of an American Original

By Lizzie Simon on March 1, 2010 in On the Road with Lizzie Simon

Thelonious Monk---Bebop Pioneer, and Bipolar? My Interview with Professor Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Thelonious Monk, The Life and Times of an American Original Read More
The Amateur License: Making a Hobby of Creativity

By Michele and Robert Root-Bernstein on February 28, 2010 in Imagine That!

When it comes to creativity, what's the dirtiest word you know? "Amateur" is certainly right up there with the best of them. But it's time we washed that particular notion right out of our mind...
Read More
5 Ways Not to Write a Novel

By Susan K. Perry, Ph.D. on February 27, 2010 in Creating in Flow

Writing a novel? There's first-draft flow, and there's the flow that comes with editing. And then there comes a time when you think you might be done, yet your manuscript is still not quite "there." Consider the following advice. ... Read More
The American Idol Effect: Why We're Not Too Good at Judging Our Own Creativity

By James C. Kaufman, Ph.D. on February 26, 2010 in And All That Jazz

Yep, I'm talking about you, William Hung. Read More
Finding Her Voice, in Radio

By Debra Shigley, JD on February 26, 2010 in Second Act

I recently wrote about the myth of overnight success, and that switching careers often requires years of work to catch up on skill and salary level. This idea rings true for Shelley Irwin, a former physical therapist who went back to school at age 38 to pursue a career in radio. Read More
Children Teach Themselves to Read

By Peter Gray on February 24, 2010 in Freedom to Learn

The general assumption in our culture is that children must be taught to read, but the experiences of "unschooling" families and of people involved in the Sudbury school movement prove otherwise. Here, based on stories submitted by parents, are seven principles relevant to the question of how children teach themselves to read without formal instruction. Read More

Creativity Blogs

And All That Jazz
A creativity researcher's take on the highs and lows of pop culture and the arts.
By James C. Kaufman, Ph.D.
Beautiful Minds
Musings on Intelligence and Creativity in Society
By Scott Barry Kaufman
Creating in Flow
Insights and advice about all forms of creative expression.
By Susan K. Perry, Ph.D.
CreativityRulz
Showcasing creativity and innovation in all its forms, shapes, and sizes.
By Tina Seelig
Dance Psychology
Looking at dance and dancers through the lens of psychology
By Peter Lovatt, PhD
Finding Butterfly
Creativity research at a glance.
By Darya Zabelina
Freedom to Learn
The roles of play and curiosity as foundations for learning
By Peter Gray
Imagine That!
Annals of Ordinary and Extraordinary Genius
By Michele and Robert Root-Bernstein
Mindbloggling
Current ideas about cultural evolution and the creative processes that power it.
By Liane Gabora, Ph.D.
Music Matters
Exploring music and the mind.
By Henkjan Honing
People in Nature
Exploring the natural world's psychological effects on human beings.
By Richard Louv
The Healing Arts
The Restoring Power of Imagination
By Cathy Malchiodi
The Power of Daydreaming
Wake Your Creative Abilities
By Amy Fries

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:

Current Issue

The Expectations Trap

Why we're conditioned to blame our partners for our unhappiness.