A Life Story Perspective on the Nexus of Creativity and Wisdom

This handbook unites the constructs of creativity and wisdom, introducing the term transformational creativity. The goal is to understand how creativity can best be used to serve the common good. That is, as humans race to address the major issues of our time, what matters most is not simply creativity but whether creativity is used wisely. In line with classic lifespan developmental theory, we argue that reflecting on one’s personal past in relation to considering future time left to live may spur manifestation of transformational creativity. Taking a life story approach, we view individuals’ evolving life story as the nexus of their lived experience of creativity and wisdom. Doing so results in three major considerations: (i) the extent to which wisdom and creativity should be combined in the construct of transformational creativity, (ii) how individuals in the second half of life reflect on life when having lived a life of transactional or transformational creativity, and (iii) how young adults shaping their future life trajectory may manifest transformational creativity in the face of normative developmental pressures.