Innovation, illegitimacy, and individualism

Abstract

Abstract Simonton has reported an interesting set of findings concerning the relationship between creativity and what he terms social pathology. To speak of social or political pathology is to use a metaphor, the meaning of which would seem to be almost completely relative. For example, democracy is a pathological state for one who believes in the divine right of kings, but the latter belief seems delusional to one who holds democratic principles. Thus, creativity is related to certain social phenomena, but it is not clear if we should classify these phenomena as pathological. In my own research on British history, I have found that an egotistic and asocial emphasis in poetry consistently cooccurs with high rates of scientific and technological innovation, illegitimate births, and industrial productivity. In one way or another all of these phenomena have to do with individualism and independence or nonconformity. Whether such epochs of lessened social solidarity should be called pathological or healthy se...