Long-Term Effect of Power on Creativity

Abstract

Places and times of creativity can be understood through an ethno-psychological approach based on two new terms, visitor and insular, with which people, places, and times can be divided depending on their philosophy of life and resulting activity. The two new terms are to be understood first as denoting causes (i.e. different developmental paths) and then as results (i.e., different personality characteristics), visitors being more creative and insulars less. Focusing the cause initially and specifically on the long-term presence or absence of division power around a person permits a classification and understanding of personality characteristics that will vary from culture to culture. For many centuries, most Chinese, Arabs, and Spaniards were visitors; later, they became insular under increasing unity power and with a corresponding decrease of creativity. Many Westerners became visitors increasing division of power. To understand the roots of the present high level division of power in the West — a phenomenon practically unique in the history of the world — we must go back to the Middle Ages and to the long fights between popes, emperors, and kings, which benefited most of Western Europe and later North America, but in lesser measure Spain and her colonies. Without these fights between the religious and the secular powers, the Magna carta would have been inconceivable as would all modern constitutions and much of the West's scientific, artistic and humanitarian creativity.