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Emotions, Creativity, and the Arts

Funding Source: Fundación Botín
Former collaboration: Fundación Botín, Imagination Institute, National Endowment for the Arts

Team Members: Zorana Ivcevic Pringle, Yifei Pei

Emotions are central to the creative process, from the (emotional) decision whether to engage in the creative process (Will people think my ideas are silly?), to positive emotions broadening idea generation, and to inevitable frustrations of creative work. Emotions spark creativity; they are used in the process of creation, and they need to be regulated to sustain the creative process. In its report on the future of jobs, The World Economic Forum lists several groups of creativity-related skills (creativity, originality, and initiative; analytical thinking and innovation; complex problem solving; reasoning, problem solving, and ideation) and emotion-related skills (emotional intelligence; leadership and social influence). That is, 6 of the 10 skills on the list pertain to creativity and emotions. This project developed a comprehensive model of the role of emotions and emotional intelligence in creativity. It works to empirically test different aspects of the model and develops programs to apply this knowledge in teaching emotion and creativity skills through the arts.

Publications

Books

Papers/Book Chapters

  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Lin, S. (2024). Children’s creative storytelling processes: A cross-cultural study in the Unites States and Spain. Creativity. Theories – Research – Applications.
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Kaufman, J. C. (2024). Inside the box: Considering the role of appropriateness for creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000703
  • Tang, M., Ivcevic, Z., Grohman, M. G., & Reiter-Palmon, R. (2024). How crises may relate to creativity and innovation: An introduction. In Z. Ivcevic, R. Reiter-Palmon, M. Tang, & M. G. Grohman (Eds.), Crises, creativity, and innovation (pp. 1-7). Palgrave MacMillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-61782-9_1
  • Hoffmann, J. D., & McGarry, J. A. (2024). Big challenges and new solutions: When students’ (unpleasant) feelings are used for good. In Z. Ivcevic, R. Reiter-Palmon, M. Tang, & M. G. Grohman (Eds.), Crises, creativity, and innovation (pp. 127-151). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-61782-9_7
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Pei, Y. (2024). Creativity and crisis: From possibilities to making them happen. In Z. Ivcevic, R. Reiter-Palmon, M. Tang, & M. G. Grohman (Eds.), Crises, Creativity, and Innovation (pp. 327-352). Palgrave MacMillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-61782-9_14
  • Boldt, G. T., Ivcevic, Z., & Kaufman, J. C. (2024). Do you think you are creative? Patterns and characteristics associated with self-perceived creativity in different domains. Creativity Research Journal, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2024.2371261
  • Ivcevic, Z., Anderson, R., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2024). Transformational creativity in education. In R. J. Sternberg & S. Karami (Eds.), Transformational creativity: Learning for a better future (pp. 149-168). Cham, Switzerland: Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51590-3_11
  • Lin, S., Ivcevic, Z., Kashdan, T., & Kaufman, S. B. (2024). Curious and persistent, but not consistent: Self-regulation traits and creativity. Journal of Creative Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.638
  • Ivcevic, Z., Grossman, E. R., Cotter, K. N., & Nusbaum, E. (2023). Self-regulation of creativity: Toward measuring strategies of creative action. Creativity Research Journal, 36(3), 491–507. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2023.2226494
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Green, G. (2023). Integrating intelligence, creativity, wisdom: The role of emotions. In R. J. Sternberg, J. C. Kaufman, & S. Karami (Eds.), Intelligence, creativity, and wisdom: Are they really distinct? (pp. 287-314). Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave-Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26772-7_12
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2023). Emotion traits and creativity. In Z. Ivcevic, J. D. Hoffmann, & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity and emotions (pp. 223-242). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009031240.016
  • Ivcevic, Z., Lin, S., Kaufman, J. C., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2023). Creativity and emotion: Connecting the dots. In Z. Ivcevic, J. D. Hoffmann, & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity and emotions (pp. 620-640). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009031240.038
  • Ivcevic, Z., Zyga, O., Hoffmann, J. D., & Palomera, R. (2022). Gender and creative ability: Mean differences and performance variability. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 46, 101186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2022.101186
  • Hoffmann, J. D., & Ivcevic Pringle, Z. (2022). Creativity, emotions, and the arts courses: An art center at the center. In Z. Ivcevic (Ed.), Creativity, emotion, and the arts: Research, application, and impact (pp. 44-57). Santander, Spain: Fundación Botín.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022). Conceptual and measurement specificity are key: The case of creativity and emotions. Creativity Research Journal, 34(4), 391-400. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2022.2122373
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022). Emotions ignite and fuel creativity. In Z. Ivcevic (Ed.), Creativity, emotion, and the arts: Research, application, and impact (pp. 34-42). Santander, Spain: Fundación Botín.
  • Zyga, O., Ivcevic, Z., Hoffmann, J. D., & Palomera, R. (2022). Developmental trends in creative ability: A cross-sectional examination of figural and verbal domains across the school-age years. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 16(2), 196-208. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000425
  • Ivcevic Pringle, Z., Grossman, E. R., & Ranjan, A. (2022). Patterns of psychological vulnerabilities and resources in artists and nonartists. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 16(1), 3–15. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000309
  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Maliakkal, N. T. (2021). Emotions, creativity, and the arts: Evaluating a course for children. Empirical Studies of the Arts, 39(2), 123–148. https://doi.org/10.1177/0276237420907864
  • Cotter, K. N., Ivcevic, Z., & Moeller, J. (2020). Person-oriented profiles of originality and fluency in divergent thinking responses. Journal of Research in Personality, 86, 103941. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2020.103941
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2019). Emotions and creativity: From process to person and product. In J. C. Kaufman & R. S. Sternberg (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity (pp. 273-295). New York: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316979839.015
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Fundación Botín. (2019). Introduction. In E. Gokcigdem (Ed.), Designing for empathy: Perspectives on the museum experience (pp. 1-15). Washington, DC: Rowman & Littlefield.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Maliakkal, N. T. (2018). Creative thinking strategies for life: A course for professional adults using art. Journal of Creative Behavior, 54(2), 293-310. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.366
  • Grohman, M. G., Ivcevic, Z., Silvia, P., & Kaufman, S. B. (2017). The role of passion and persistence in creativity. Psychology in Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts, 11(4), 376-385. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/aca0000121
  • Ivcevic, Z., Ebert, M., Hoffmann, J. D., & Brackett, M. A. (2017). Creativity in the domain of emotions. In J. C. Kaufman, J. Baer, & V. Glaveanu (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity across different domains (pp. 525-548). New York: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316274385.029
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2017). Emotions and creativity: From states to traits and emotion abilities. In G. J. Feist, R. Reiter-Palmon, & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity and personality research (pp. 187-213). New York: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316228036.011
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Nusbaum, E. C. (2017). From having an idea to doing something with it: Self-regulation for creativity. In M. Karwowski & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.), The creative self: How our beliefs, self-efficacy, mindset, and identity impact our creativity (pp. 343-365). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809790-8.00020-0
  • Maliakkal, N. T., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Brackett, M. A. (2017). An art-based workshop for families: Learning emotion skills and choosing creativity. International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 27(1), 45-60.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., Zamora, G., Bazhydai, M., & Brackett, M. A. (2016). Intended persistence: Comparing academic and creative challenges in high school. Social Psychology of Education, 19(4), 793-814. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-016-9362-x
  • Maliakkal, N. T., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Brackett, M. A. (2016). Teaching emotion and creativity skills through art: A workshop for adolescents. International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 26(1), 69-83.
  • Ivcevic, Z., Maliakkal, N. T., & Fundación Botín. (2016). Teaching emotion and creativity skills through the arts. In E. Gokcigdem (Ed.), Fostering empathy through museums. Washington, DC: Rowman & Littlefield. https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781442263581/Fostering-Empathy-Through-Museums
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Brackett, M. A. (2015). Predicting creativity: Interactive effects of openness to experience and emotion regulation ability. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts, 9(4), 480-487. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039826
  • Ebert, M., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., Phan, C., & Brackett, M. A. (2015). Creativity, emotion and art: Development and initial evaluation of a workshop for professional adults. International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 25(2), 47-59.
  • Ebert, M., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., Phan, C., & Brackett, M. A. (2015). Teaching emotion and creativity skills through art: A workshop for children. International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 25(2), 23-35.
  • Ivcevic, Z., Hoffmann, J. D, Brackett, M. A., & Fundación Botín. (2014). Creativity, emotions, and the arts. In B. Heys (Ed.), Arts and emotions: Nurturing our creative potential (pp. 6-23). Santander, Spain: Fundación Botín.

Presentations

  • Ivcevic, Z. (2024, March). Self-regulation of creative action: Toward a nomological network. In I. Lebuda (Chair), Bridging Self-Perceptions and Self-Regulation in Creativity [Symposium]. Society for Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts Annual Meeting, Denton, TX.
  • Pei, Y., Lin, S., & Ivcevic, Z. (2024, March). How are you curious? Types of curiosity and creativity. In I. Lebuda (Chair), Bridging self-perceptions and self-regulation in creativity [Symposium]. Society for Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts Annual Meeting, Denton, TX.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2023, September). Creativity in action: From idea to doing something with it [Keynote address]. Marconi Institute for Creativity Annual Conference, Trieste, Italy.
  • Lin, S., Ivcevic, Z., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2023, August). School-aged students' evaluation on divergent thinking task. In S. Lin & Z. Ivcevic (Chairs), Evaluation and metacognition in creative thinking [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Washington, DC.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2023, March). Creativity and well-being: Emotions are the glue [Keynote address]. Creativity Expert Exchange Annual Conference, Center for Applied Imagination, Buffalo, NY.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022, November). Building creativity: From ideas to actions. [Invited address] Centro Botín, Santander, Spain.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022, November). Educating for creativity: From thinking skills to self-regulation [Keynote address]. The Landscape, Challenges, and Future Directions for Research in Educational Psychology Conference, East China Normal University (ECNU), Shanghai, China (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022, August). Creativity realized: Self-regulation in the creative process of artists and scientists. In A. Zielinska (Chair), Creativity under control: Exploring self-regulation in the creative process [Symposium]. Marconi Institute for Creativity Annual Conference, Bologna, Italy.
  • Lin, S. & Ivcevic, Z. (2022, August). Patterns of traits and creativity. In Z. Ivcevic (Chair), Broadening the study of emotions and creativity: From person to product and educational applications [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Minneapolis, MN.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2022, August). Self-regulation for creativity. In Z. Ivcevic (Chair), Broadening the study of emotions and creativity: From person to product and educational applications [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Minneapolis, MN.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2021, September). Creativity and emotions: The role of measurement and analysis in detecting a complex relationship [Paper presentation]. Marconi Institute for Creativity Annual Conference, Bologna, Italy (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2021, October). From idea to action: Self-regulation for creativity. [Keynote address]. Kansas Association for the Gifted, Talented, and Creative Annual Convention (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2021, August). Creative leadership. [Invited address]. World Creativity Day Leadership Meeting (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2021, June). Making creativity happen: Serendipity in transforming ideas into products. Creativity Week: Serendipity in the Creative Process. Webster University, Geneva, Switzerland (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2020, August). The role of emotions across the creative process of artists. In Z. Ivcevic (Chair), Creativity and emotions: From the decision to be creative to reactions to creative products [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention (virtual).
  • Goldberg, R., Averbach, J., Ivcevic, Z., & Grossman, E. R. (2020, August). Beginning, middle and end of the creative process: A study of educators in a year-long fellowship project [Poster presentation]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Washington, DC (virtual).
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Grossman, E. R. (2019, November). Emotions as different perspectives [Workshop]. Designing for Empathy Summit, Washington, DC.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2019, October). From having ideas to making them happen: Self-regulation in creativity [Keynote address]. European Council for Higher Abilities Conference, Dubrovnik, Croatia.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2019, October). Emotions inspire and fuel creativity. First International Conference on Creativity, Emotion, and the Arts, Botín Center, Santander, Spain.
  • Grossman, E. R., & Ivcevic, Z. (2019, August). Self-regulation in the creative process: A study of educators in a year-long fellowship [Poster presentation]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Chicago, IL.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2019, June). Where do we go next: Creativity and emotions. The European Collaborative Creativity Conference, Webster University, Geneva, Switzerland.
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Grossman, E. R. (2019, May). Patterns of vulnerabilities and resources in artists [National Endowment for the Arts research panel discussion]. Association for Psychological Science Annual Meeting, Washington, DC
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Taylor, C. (2019, March). Emotion abilities and achievement. In S. Olderbak (Chair), Recent advances in ability emotional intelligence research: Examining predictive utility and mechanisms. [Symposium]. International Convention of Psychological Science, Paris, France.
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Grossman, E. R. (2018, October). Teaching emotion skills in an art center. Fostering Universal Ethics and Compassion Through Museums, A Summit with His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Dharmasala, India.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., & Ivcevic, Z. (2018, August). Emotions and creativity: Going to the source. In Z. Ivcevic & J. D. Hoffmann (Chairs), Creativity and emotion: What lies beyond the benefits of positive emotions? [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, San Francisco, CA.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2018, August). Discussant. In S. Russ (Chairs), Pretend play as predictor of creativity: Practical implications [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, San Francisco, CA.
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Grossman, E. R. (2018, May). Teaching emotion and creativity skills through the arts. In E. Gokcigdem (Chair), Empathy-building through museums: An interactive demonstration [Symposium]. American Alliance of Museums Annual Meeting and Museum Expo, Phoenix, AZ.
  • Ivcevic Z. (2017, October). Creative process: From ideas to products and everywhere in between. In D. H. Feldman (Chair), Creativity, spirituality and health across the life-span society [Symposium]. Society for the Study of Human Development Biennial Meeting, Providence, RI.
  • Ranjan A., & Ivcevic Z. (2017, October). Creativity self-regulation scale: Strategies for turning ideas into creative achievements. In D. H. Feldman (Chair), Creativity, spirituality and health across the life-span society [Symposium]. Society for the Study of Human Development Biennial Meeting, Providence, RI.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., Maliakkal, N. T., & Brackett, M. A. (2017, August). Teaching creativity and emotion skills through art: Workshops for adults and children. In J. D. Hoffmann (Chair), The power of imagination: Building emotion and creativity skills through art and play interventions [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Washington, DC.
  • Ranjan, A., & Ivcevic, Z. (2017, May). Development of creativity self-regulation scale: Merging the gap between creative potential and achievement [Poster presentation]. Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention, Boston, MA.
  • Cotter, K. N., Christensen, A. P., Silvia, P. J., & Ivcevic, Z. (2017, May). Self-regulation and creative goals in everyday environments [Poster presentation]. Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention, Boston, MA.
  • Ivcevic, Z., Hoffmann, J. D., Palomera Martin, R., & Brackett, M. A. (2016, August). Development of figural and verbal creativity in Spanish children. In J. D. Hoffmann & Z. Ivcevic (Chairs), The development of creativity in children [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Denver, CO.
  • Nusbaum, E., Ivcevic, Z., & Thomson, P. S. (2016, August). Creativity and psychological health revisited: Patterns of vulnerabilities and strengths in artists. In E. C. Nusbaum (Chair), Looking back to look forward: Re-examining and re-imagining historical ideas in creativity research [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Denver, CO.
  • Maliakkal, N., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., Palomera Martin, R. P., & Brackett, M. A. (2016, August). The role of emotions in figural and verbal creativity [Poster presentation]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Denver, CO.
  • Ivcevic, Z., & Hoffmann, J. D. (2016, August). Courage to create: Attitudes toward creativity predict creative behavior. In E. C. Nusbaum (Chair), Looking back to look forward: Re-examining and re-imagining historical ideas in creativity research [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Denver, CO.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2016, April). From having ideas to making them happen: Emotions and self-regulation in creativity. Learning and the Brain Educational Conference, The Science of Imagination, Orlando, FL.
  • Ivcevic, Z. (2015, August). Emotions and creativity: Where do we go from here? [Berlyne Award address]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., & Ivcevic, Z. (2015, August). The role of formative childhood experiences in creativity [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada.
  • Nishioka, C., Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Russ, S. (2015, August) Emotions and fantasy in children’s storytelling: A cross-cultural comparison of U.S. and Spain. [Paper presentation]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada.
  • Hoffmann, J. D., Ivcevic, Z., & Kaufman, J. C. (2014, August). The role of everyday creativity in the coping of high school students. In J. D. Hoffmann and Z. Ivcevic (Chairs), Personal benefits of creativity: The role of creativity in coping and well-being [Symposium]. American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Washington, DC.

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