Scott Barry Kaufman

Scott Barry Kaufman

Aspen Ideas Festival 2014
Born June 3, 1979
Penn Wynne, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Nationality American
Fields Cognitive Science
Educational Psychology
Positive Psychology
Institutions University of Pennsylvania
Website
http://www.scottbarrykaufman.com

Scott Barry Kaufman (born June 3, 1979) is an American psychologist, author, and popular science writer known for his research and writing on intelligence and creativity. Most media attention has focused on Kaufman's attempt to redefine intelligence.[1][2][3] Kaufman is Scientific Director of The Imagination Institute in the Positive Psychology Center [4] at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also co-founder of The Creativity Post [5] and author of Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined.[6] Kaufman won the 2011 Daniel E. Berlyne Award from Division 10 of the American Psychological Association for outstanding research on aesthetics, creativity, and the arts by a junior scholar,[7] and is a 2011-2012 recipient of the Mensa International Award for Excellence in Research.[8]

Education

After graduating from Lower Merion High School in 1998, Kaufman received his B.S. from Carnegie Mellon University, where he was Nobel Prize Winner Herbert A. Simon's last research assistant, and a student of Randy Pausch. In 2005, He received his M.Phil. from King's College, Cambridge under a Gates Scholarship, where he worked with Nicholas Mackintosh. After Cambridge, Kaufman earned his Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from Yale University where he was mentored by Robert Sternberg, Jeremy R. Gray, and Jerome L. Singer. From 2009-2010, he was a post-doctoral fellow at the Center Leo Apostel for Interdisciplinary Studies.

Personal

Kaufman is the grandson of former Philadelphia Orchestra cellist Harry Gorodetzer.[9][10][11]

Research

Kaufman's research focuses on the measurement and development of intelligence and creativity, with a consideration of implications for education, business, and society. Kaufman has over 40 scientific papers in numerous books and journals, including Cognition, Intelligence, and the Journal of Creative Behavior. He is also editor of The Philosophy of Creativity (with Elliot Samuel Paul, Oxford, 2014), The Complexity of Greatness: Beyond Talent or Practice (Oxford, 2013), The Cambridge Handbook of Intelligence (with Robert Sternberg, Cambridge, 2011), and The Psychology of Creative Writing (with James C. Kaufman, Cambridge, 2009).

The dual-process theory of human intelligence

Most theories of human intelligence and tests of intelligence emphasize controlled and deliberate reasoning as the hallmark of human intelligence. While agreeing that such thought processes are an important component of intelligence, Kaufman argues that spontaneous forms of thinking such as insight, imaginative play, daydreaming, implicit learning, and a reduced latent inhibition are also important contributors to a wide range of intelligent behaviors as well as creative greatness.[12][13] Integrating modern dual-process theories of cognition with research on human intelligence, Kaufman proposed the dual-process theory of human intelligence.[14][15][16][17] The theory emphasizes the importance of adaptation to task demands as the essence of intelligent functioning. At the same time, the theory takes into account an individual's personal goals and accommodates a wide range of intelligent behaviors in a wide range of fields, from the arts to the sciences. A key assumption of the theory is that abilities are not static entities but are constantly changing throughout the life span as the person continually engages with controlled and spontaneous modes of thought. In Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined, Kaufman makes the point that his theory is also fundamentally developmental because it views intelligence as the dynamic interplay of engagement and ability over time in the pursuit of personal goals. [18] Under this conceptualization, personal characteristics such as passion, growth mindset, and persistence are also essential elements of human intelligence.

Bibliography

Books

References

  1. ↑ Why We Need to Redefine Intelligence, Harvard Business Review IdeaCast, 13 June 2013.
  2. ↑ Redefining Intelligence, The Leonard Lopate Show- WNYC, 13 June 2013.
  3. ↑ Beyond IQ: 5 Ways to Reframe Success and Smarts, Fast Co.Create, 13 June 2013.
  4. ↑ Positive Psychology Center
  5. ↑ The Creativity Post
  6. ↑ Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined (2013). New York, NY: Basic Books. (ISBN 0-465-02554-4)
  7. ↑ Berlyne Award, Division 10, American Psychological Association,
  8. ↑ Awards for Excellence in Research winners, 2011-2012 Mensa Education & Research Foundation
  9. ↑ Gates scholarship backs quest of L. Merion alum Studying at Cambridge for a year could bring progress in how human intelligence is measured., The Philadelphia Inquirer, 13 April 2003.
  10. ↑ Genius, Genes and Gusto: How Passions Find You, Psychology Today, 1 November 2009.
  11. ↑ Harry Gorodetzer, former Phila. Orchestra cellist. The Philadelphia Inquirer, 23 December 2002.
  12. ↑ Dreams of Glory, Psychology Today, March 2014.
  13. ↑ Why Daydreamers Are More Creative, Beautiful Minds, 27 February 2011.
  14. ↑ Kaufman, S. B. (2009). Beyond general intelligence: The dual-process theory of human intelligence (Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation). Yale University, New Haven, CT.
  15. ↑ Kaufman, S.B. (2011). Intelligence and the cognitive unconscious. In R.J. Sternberg & S.B. Kaufman (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Intelligence (pp. 442-467). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  16. ↑ Kaufman, J.C., Kaufman, S.B., & Plucker, J.A. (2013). Contemporary theories of intelligence. In J. Reisberg (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Psychology (pp. 811-822). New York, NY: Oxford University Press
  17. ↑ 6 Clues to Character, Psychology Today, 15 December 2011.
  18. ↑ Book Review - Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined, Creativity Post, June 14, 2013

External links