Martin, Lee (2009) Critical realism and creativity : a challenge to the hegemony of psychological conceptions. Journal of Critical Realism, 8 (3). pp. 294-315. ISSN 1476-7430.

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Abstract

Humanist thought has long considered the nature of creativity in workers but the dominant framework for conceptualising creativity, rooted in psychological theory, has provided inadvertent limits on who might be considered creative at work. This is because creativity is commonly defined through the recognition of produced and valued novelty. This definition obscures all that is unrecognised, unrealised, unexercised, and currently in potential from being considered as creativity. Given that creativity can sometimes exist in potential, and that some workers have their creativity actively prevented from being recognised, researching and understanding the unrecognised creative person can be seen as an important goal for humanist scholars. The goal of this paper then is to unpick the contradiction between unrecognised creativity and dominant definitions of creativity in order to enable a deeper understanding of creativity at work. The paper proceeds with an immanent critique of the dominant framework and its definition of creativity, before proposing a critical realist inspired ontology of creativity, including an augmented definition of creativity. The consequences of this research for understanding creativity in organisations are briefly reflected upon.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts > Theatre, Performance and Cultural Policy Studies > Centre for Cultural Policy Studies
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Creative ability , Employees, Work environment, Labor, Critical realism
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Critical Realism
Publisher:	Maney Publishing
ISSN:	1476-7430
Official Date:	2009
Dates:	Date Event 2009 Published
Volume:	8
Number:	3
Page Range:	pp. 294-315
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
Date of first compliant deposit:	30 August 2016
Date of first compliant Open Access:	30 August 2016

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