The Future of Creativity: Social Construction of Creativity through Creator Economy

Abstract

Creator Economy, which employs online platforms in monetizing creative work has brought renewed interests in the fields of creativity and communication. This study, however, asserts that the increased interest demands increased and improved conceptualization of what it entails to be creative. Aimed to generate a conceptualization of creativity that can attenuate how it is democratized by the Creator Economy, this thesis reviewed works of leading researchers in creativity studies such as Amabile, Csikszentmihalyi, Boden, Beghetto & Kaufman, and conducted an experiment comparing how creative experts and non-experts differ in identifying creativity in online platforms, particularly in YouTube. Through a quantitative method, the research observed difference between experts and non-experts’ ratings as well as deviations in the scientific definitions of creativity. The results are discussed in terms of how an increase in participation and engagement on the topic of creativity among the general public may be both detrimental and beneficial to creatives, society and the future of creativity conceptualization.