Towards a general model of creativity based on the theory of the adjacent possible

Michael Araki

European Economic Review, 2025, vol. 178, issue C

Abstract: This paper introduces a General Model of Creativity (GMC) as an extension of the Theory of the Adjacent Possible (TAP) addressing a longstanding gap: the lack of an equation that formalizes a wide range of insights from creativity theory. The GMC draws on multiple strands of creativity literature, particularly the systems view of creativity (SVC), the blind-variation and selective-retention (BVSR) framework, and honing theory (HT), incorporating cognitive processes, field-level gatekeeping, and broader selective pressures into a TAP-like equation, and formalizing several processes that have remained largely narrative in the creativity literature. Alongside the equation, a graphical version building on Csikszentmihalyi’s SVC maps the creative cycle from cultural knowledge, through individual insight and field evaluation, to the integration of novelties back into the domain. To demonstrate the model’s explanatory power, the GMC is applied to simulate the well-documented phenomenon of multiple independent discoveries in science, thereby extending TAP’s reach to a key empirical regularity in creativity research.

Keywords: General model of creativity; Theory of the adjacent possible; Creativity; Innovation; Cultural evolution; Combinatorial evolution; Systems model of creativity; Blind variation selective retention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:178:y:2025:i:c:s0014292125001710

DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2025.105121

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