Distances and diversity: sources for social creativity

  • Authors:
  • Gerhard Fischer

  • Affiliations:
  • University of Colorado, Boulder, CO

  • Venue:
  • Proceedings of the 5th conference on Creativity & cognition
  • Year:
  • 2005

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.02

Visualization

Abstract

The power of the unaided, individual mind is highly overrated: The Renaissance scholar no longer exists. Although creative individuals are often thought of as working in isolation, the role of interaction and collaboration with other individuals is critical to creativity. Creative activity grows out of the relationship between individuals and their work, and from the interactions between an individual and other human beings. Because complex problems require more knowledge than any single person possesses, it is necessary that all involved stakeholders participate, communicate, collaborate, and learn from each other. Distances (across spatial, temporal, and technological dimensions) and diversity (bringing stakeholders together from different cultures) are important sources for social creativity.This paper describes conceptual frameworks and socio-technical environments (derived from the systems that we have developed over the last decade) in which social creativity can come alive.