Unveiling the Dark Side of Creativity
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Laypersons and academics alike have largely viewed creativity as a positive force, a notion challenged by the philosopher and educator Robert McLaren of California State University, Fullerton in 1993. McLaren proposed that creativity had a dark side. As time went on, newer concepts –negative and malevolent creativity – included conceiving original ways to cheat on tests or doing purposeful harm to others, for instance, innovating new ways to execute terrorist attacks.
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We looked at the problem through what psychologists call the four Ps of creativity – person (the individual engaging in the act), process (the strategy employed), product (the creative outcome itself), and press (the situation at hand.) After a series of five experiments, we concluded that negative creativity (product) is most likely to be displayed by highly intelligent persons, with subclinical negative personality traits such as psychopathy, especially in open-ended situations where deception can succeed. When creative people had a negative, morally questionable goal up-front, they were also more likely to lie.
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We confirmed the contention that the dark side of creativity exists, and is one that it’s important to acknowledge and understand. People can get hurt in surprising and original ways by practitioners of this dark craft. And, just as important, an entire set of misbehaviours with the potential to help us learn more about human creativity may be going unnoticed and ignored. What if, after knowing that the dark side exists, we consciously try to use it? Is that really always bad? Perhaps we won’t lie to get into a theatre – but what if a surprise birthday party for a friend requires sly and crafty planning, coordination, and a great deal of deception and misdirection? Can we then channel our dark energies to bring joy to others? Sure; but this can become a slippery slope. If the goal switches to planning a surprise theft, the same skills can harm others.
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The dark art has been here all along. Just consider some innovative advertising campaigns deriding a competitor’s product in favour of one’s own: the cola wars, the burger wars and the coffee wars are all notorious for hinting at the competition’s lower quality, with direct or indirect references. Is this dark? Sure; it’s an underhand way to get through to your undecided consumer. Is it creative? Of course! Should it be used? Definitely – it’s meant to increase your profit in a competitive world. Dark humour should take a bow, as well. To be able to come up with a dead-baby joke, one needs not only a punch line, but a macabre one. To be able to laugh at such a joke, one needs to have a strong stomach and keep moralistic thinking at bay. The now infamous comedian Louis CK uses black comedy in his acts as well as his namesake television show. His work was disturbing yet hilarious – until he went too far, joking about high-school students massacred with guns. One can argue that dark humour has the potential to psychologically harm others – but dark jokes made with intent to elicit laughter highlight the importance of distinguishing means and ends in creative pursuits.
