Applied imagination
Imagination is a fundamental human capacity, and to navigate our current global challenges, we need to define and encourage the practice of imagination, or what we term “applied imagination.” In this study, we convened a series of focus groups or “virtual salons” to address three guiding questions:...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1275942/full |
| _version_ | 1797643307803738112 |
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| author | Ed Finn Ed Finn Ed Finn Carolina Torrejon Capurro Michael G. Bennett Ruth Wylie Ruth Wylie |
| author_facet | Ed Finn Ed Finn Ed Finn Carolina Torrejon Capurro Michael G. Bennett Ruth Wylie Ruth Wylie |
| author_sort | Ed Finn |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Imagination is a fundamental human capacity, and to navigate our current global challenges, we need to define and encourage the practice of imagination, or what we term “applied imagination.” In this study, we convened a series of focus groups or “virtual salons” to address three guiding questions: (1) How might we define imagination? (2) How might we (or should we) measure imagination? And (3) How might we foster imagination? Our efforts to define applied imagination highlight the crucial role imagination plays in human survival and thriving, the role of social forces in fostering or discouraging imagination, the connection between imagination and faith, and the “dark side” or maladaptive aspects of imagination. The discussions on measuring imagination were quite divided, with some salon participants arguing for the potential of indirect modes for measuring imaginative capacity while others argued that measuring imagination was functionally impossible and morally suspect. Finally, our results around fostering imagination suggest the importance of using play and humor, separating imaginative activities from the everyday, and employing constraints to prompt imaginative responses. We end with a discussion of possible directions for future research and a call to create a transdisciplinary field of imagination studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T14:12:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-16a100bae997499fba83b6cf9a2d5226 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T14:12:56Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-16a100bae997499fba83b6cf9a2d52262023-11-01T16:17:10ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782023-11-011410.3389/fpsyg.2023.12759421275942Applied imaginationEd Finn0Ed Finn1Ed Finn2Carolina Torrejon Capurro3Michael G. Bennett4Ruth Wylie5Ruth Wylie6Center for Science and the Imagination, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesSchool for the Future of Innovation in Society, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesSchool of Arts, Media and Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesCenter for Science and the Imagination, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesMary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesCenter for Science and the Imagination, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United StatesInstitute for Experiential AI, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, United StatesImagination is a fundamental human capacity, and to navigate our current global challenges, we need to define and encourage the practice of imagination, or what we term “applied imagination.” In this study, we convened a series of focus groups or “virtual salons” to address three guiding questions: (1) How might we define imagination? (2) How might we (or should we) measure imagination? And (3) How might we foster imagination? Our efforts to define applied imagination highlight the crucial role imagination plays in human survival and thriving, the role of social forces in fostering or discouraging imagination, the connection between imagination and faith, and the “dark side” or maladaptive aspects of imagination. The discussions on measuring imagination were quite divided, with some salon participants arguing for the potential of indirect modes for measuring imaginative capacity while others argued that measuring imagination was functionally impossible and morally suspect. Finally, our results around fostering imagination suggest the importance of using play and humor, separating imaginative activities from the everyday, and employing constraints to prompt imaginative responses. We end with a discussion of possible directions for future research and a call to create a transdisciplinary field of imagination studies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1275942/fullimaginationapplied imaginationcollaborative imaginationcreativityinterdisciplinary |
| spellingShingle | Ed Finn Ed Finn Ed Finn Carolina Torrejon Capurro Michael G. Bennett Ruth Wylie Ruth Wylie Applied imagination Frontiers in Psychology imagination applied imagination collaborative imagination creativity interdisciplinary |
| title | Applied imagination |
| title_full | Applied imagination |
| title_fullStr | Applied imagination |
| title_full_unstemmed | Applied imagination |
| title_short | Applied imagination |
| title_sort | applied imagination |
| topic | imagination applied imagination collaborative imagination creativity interdisciplinary |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1275942/full |
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