Serendipity: The Role of Chance and Accidents in Creativity
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| Title: | Serendipity: The Role of Chance and Accidents in Creativity |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Wendy Ross (ORCID |
| Source: | Creativity Research Journal. 2025 37(2):284-292. |
| Availability: | Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 9 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Evaluative |
| Descriptors: | Discovery Processes, Creativity, Role, Environmental Influences, Creative Thinking, Locus of Control |
| DOI: | 10.1080/10400419.2024.2313898 |
| ISSN: | 1040-0419 1532-6934 |
| Abstract: | Chance plays an acknowledged role in creativity, but taking it seriously challenges traditional notions of talent and expertise as well as the importance of agency and intentionality. Chance without skill is not enough on its own to support creativity. The phenomenon of serendipity requires both luck and the skill to make the most of it. This review argues that it can provide a lens through which to understand how individual, emotional and environmental factors interact in the creative process. However, serendipity is acknowledged to be a complex phenomenon that is not easily investigated from an empirical perspective. This review addresses some of the complexities, offers methodological recommendations and surveys some emerging findings. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1498037 |
| Database: | ERIC |
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| Abstract: | Chance plays an acknowledged role in creativity, but taking it seriously challenges traditional notions of talent and expertise as well as the importance of agency and intentionality. Chance without skill is not enough on its own to support creativity. The phenomenon of serendipity requires both luck and the skill to make the most of it. This review argues that it can provide a lens through which to understand how individual, emotional and environmental factors interact in the creative process. However, serendipity is acknowledged to be a complex phenomenon that is not easily investigated from an empirical perspective. This review addresses some of the complexities, offers methodological recommendations and surveys some emerging findings. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1040-0419 1532-6934 |
| DOI: | 10.1080/10400419.2024.2313898 |
