The Creative Self: Effect of Beliefs, Self-Efficacy, Mindset, and Identity

The Creative Self reviews and summarizes key theories, studies, and new ideas about the role and significance self-beliefs play in one’s creativity. It untangles the interrelated constructs of creative self-efficacy, creative metacognition, creative identity, and creative self-concept. It explores how and when creative self-beliefs are formed as well as how creative self-beliefs can be strengthened. Part I discusses how creativity plays a part in one’s self-identity and its relationship with free will and efficacy. Part II discusses creativity present in day-to-day life across the lifespan. Part III highlights the intersection of the creative self with other variables such as mindset, domains, the brain, and individual differences. Part IV explores methodology and culture in relation to creativity. Part V, discusses additional constructs or theories that offer promise for future research on creativity.

• Explores how beliefs about one’s creativity are part of one’s identity
• Investigates the development of self-beliefs about creativity
• Identifies external and personality factors influencing self-beliefs about creativity
• Incorporates worldwide research with cross-disciplinary contributors

Maciej Karwowski, PhD, is an associate professor and head of Creative Education Lab at Maria Grzegorzewska University in Warsaw, Poland. His main research interests include educational psychology of creativity, measurement of creativity and analysis of contextual factor influencing creative thinking. Karwowski is author, coauthor, editor or coeditor of 10 books and more than 100 peer-reviewed articles. He is a co-editor of the journal Creativity: Theories-Research-Applications, associate editor of the Journal of Creative Behavior, senior editor of Europe’s Journal of Psychology and on the editorial boards of Thinking Skills and Creativity, Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, Journal of Creativity in Business and Innovation, and Frontiers in Educational Psychology.

James C. Kaufman, PhD, is a Professor of Educational Psychology at the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. He is the author/editor of more than 30 books and 250 papers. Dr. Kaufman co-founded two APA journals (Psychology of Popular Media Culture and Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts) and is a Past President of APA’s Division 10. He was won numerous awards, including the Torrance Award from the National Association for Gifted Children, the Berlyne and Farnsworth Awards from APA, and Mensa’s research award.