Generativity Theory
Encyclopedia
Generativity Theory is a formal, predictive theory of creative behavior in individuals. First proposed by American psychologist Robert Epstein
in the early 1980s, the theory asserts that novel behavior is the result of a dynamic interaction among previously established behaviors; in other words, new ideas result from interconnections among old ones. More important, the theory asserts that the process of interconnection is both orderly and predictable. In a series of studies with animals and people, Epstein showed that Generativity Theory, cast into a series of equations called "transformation functions" and instantiated in a computer model, could be used to predict novel, creative behavior moment-to-moment in time in both animals and people under controlled laboratory conditions. Computer models derived from Generativity Theory generate a series of smooth, overlapping probability curves, each representing a possible behavior that can occur in a new situation, together comprising what Epstein calls a "probability profile". He also developed a new graphical technique called a "frequency profile", which demonstrates the orderliness of actual novel performances. The curves of a frequency profile can be predicted by Epstein's equations.
Epstein's research and theoretical work on this topic were summarized in a series of studies published in prestigious journals such as Science, The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Psychological Science. Perhaps the most famous study in this series was a pigeon study called "'Insight' in the Pigeon: Antecedents and Determinants of an Intelligent Performance", published in the British scientific journal Nature in 1984. In this study, Epstein and his colleagues showed: (a) that pigeons that had been taught appropriate minimum component behaviors could solve the classic box-and-banana problem, first studied by the German psychologist Wolfgang Köhler
in the early 1900s; (b) that varying the training with different pigeons led to orderly and distinctly different outcomes; and (c) that the emergence of novel behavior in this situation was orderly and predictable.
A number of his articles on this topic were collected in 1996 in a book called Cognition, Creativity, and Behavior. Over the years, Generativity Theory has given rise to a new competency-based technology for enhancing creativity in both individuals and groups, summarized in an extensive review in the Encyclopedia of Creativity, in Epstein's book The Big Book of Creativity Games, in a 2008 study published in the Creativity Research Journal, and in articles in Psychology Today, Scientific American Mind, and elsewhere.
Robert Epstein
Robert Epstein Ph.D. is an American psychologist, researcher, writer, and media professional whose primary contributions have been in the areas of creativity, artificial intelligence, peace, adolescence, and interpersonal relationships...
in the early 1980s, the theory asserts that novel behavior is the result of a dynamic interaction among previously established behaviors; in other words, new ideas result from interconnections among old ones. More important, the theory asserts that the process of interconnection is both orderly and predictable. In a series of studies with animals and people, Epstein showed that Generativity Theory, cast into a series of equations called "transformation functions" and instantiated in a computer model, could be used to predict novel, creative behavior moment-to-moment in time in both animals and people under controlled laboratory conditions. Computer models derived from Generativity Theory generate a series of smooth, overlapping probability curves, each representing a possible behavior that can occur in a new situation, together comprising what Epstein calls a "probability profile". He also developed a new graphical technique called a "frequency profile", which demonstrates the orderliness of actual novel performances. The curves of a frequency profile can be predicted by Epstein's equations.
Epstein's research and theoretical work on this topic were summarized in a series of studies published in prestigious journals such as Science, The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Psychological Science. Perhaps the most famous study in this series was a pigeon study called "'Insight' in the Pigeon: Antecedents and Determinants of an Intelligent Performance", published in the British scientific journal Nature in 1984. In this study, Epstein and his colleagues showed: (a) that pigeons that had been taught appropriate minimum component behaviors could solve the classic box-and-banana problem, first studied by the German psychologist Wolfgang Köhler
Wolfgang Köhler
Wolfgang Köhler was a German psychologist and phenomenologist who, like Max Wertheimer, and Kurt Koffka, contributed to the creation of Gestalt psychology.-Early life:...
in the early 1900s; (b) that varying the training with different pigeons led to orderly and distinctly different outcomes; and (c) that the emergence of novel behavior in this situation was orderly and predictable.
A number of his articles on this topic were collected in 1996 in a book called Cognition, Creativity, and Behavior. Over the years, Generativity Theory has given rise to a new competency-based technology for enhancing creativity in both individuals and groups, summarized in an extensive review in the Encyclopedia of Creativity, in Epstein's book The Big Book of Creativity Games, in a 2008 study published in the Creativity Research Journal, and in articles in Psychology Today, Scientific American Mind, and elsewhere.