Inspired by Howard Gruber's Evolving Systems Approach, these studies
explore creativity in several domains. The idea that the creative person
embodies a system of loosely coupled sub-systems - knowledge, purpose,
and affect that work together, is viewed here in different chapters that
explore this concept. These include autobiographies of incarcerated
youth, curricula for moral and civic responsibility, changing attitudes
of readers to text (romance novels), as well as case studies of highly
creative individuals, such as George Bernard Shaw. Gruber's approach
provides concepts as well as methodological tools which the authors
apply to diverse creative processes.
This book is a valuable resource for undergraduate as well as graduate
level students interested in creativity, development and education. In
addition to the intrinsic interest of each chapter, the guiding theme of
the book is the underlying theory of creativity, Gruber's Evolving
Systems Approach, and illustrates the unusual breadth and flexibility
of that theory.