2. Creativity Through a Cultural Lens: The Dichotomy of “The West” and “The East”

Creativity is a multi-faceted phenomenon. One controversy in the creativity literature concerns whether the concept of creativity has a universal meaning or is perceived differently in various cultures. Although the fundamental idea of creativeness seems to be deeply rooted in all cultures, definitions and attributes of creativity, the level of creative activity, and the domains in which creativity is promoted, vary across cultures. In particular, the dichotomy of “the West” and “the East” is one of the most popular approaches in the characterization (at a surface level) of differences in understanding and defining creativity. However, it is not obvious what these terms exactly mean and these terms are sometimes used rather stereotypically. In this chapter, the “western” and “eastern” views on creativity are outlined as described in the literature.