Goal

How can creative resolve -- the fundamental commitment to overcoming what seem to be tragic dilemmas by questioning evidence against the possibility of doing so, coming up with creative ways of overcoming these problems, and acting with persistence to do so -- advance human flourishing? Philosophers offer many different accounts of human flourishing. On these accounts, flourishing bears a close connection to meaning, purpose, good functioning and character, spiritual growth and virtues like resilience and hope. It is also plausible that when individuals fare well, their societies will as well. But can creative resolve give us meaning or purpose, and how does it contribute to good human functioning and character? How can creative resolve contribute to the flourishing of society as a whole? Might it advance science, spirituality, athletic or artistic achievement? Can it help the poor or marginalized? If creative resolve contributes to human flourishing, is it a virtue that allows us to overcome barriers to individual and societal flourishing? If so, understanding its contributions to flourishing may guide discovery and innovation that allows individuals and societies to overcome difficult circumstances. This research builds on previous Templeton funded work on these topics (http://hopeoptimism.com/projects/can-hope-help-us-overcome-obstacles-to-doing-hat-we-should https://www.happinessandwellbeing.org/).

Opportunity

There is significant research on well-being and its determinants, particularly in the field of positive psychology. However, there are no measures of creative resolve and how it contributes to human well-being. We believe interdisciplinary inquiry is essential for considering how creative resolve advances human flourishing using the tools of philosophy, theology, psychology, and related scientific disciplines.

Roadblocks

Creative resolve and flourishing are abstract terms, so, a major challenge in the research will be determining how to accurately measure each in a scientific setting, and in turn, assessing the ways in which creative resolve contributes to flourishing. Another challenge will be that within different academic disciplines, such as philosophy, economics, theology, psychology and neuroscience, there are different perspectives on human flourishing. Thus, connecting creative resolve to human flourishing in each of these different perspectives, and developing a composite understanding of the role creative resolve plays in human flourishing poses a (we believe, surmountable) challenge.

Breakthroughs Needed

First, the philosophers, psychologists, economists, neuroscientists, and theologians who are part of the team involved must define creativity, perseverance, and human flourishing on both an individual and societal level. Following that, researchers must develop quantitative and qualitative measures of creativity, perseverance, and human flourishing.We believe however that with appropriate interdisciplinary collaboration, researchers can develop indices measuring these core concepts. Finally, using these indices researchers will assess these concepts empirically and evaluate the ways in which creative resolve contributes to human flourishing using these measures. This may involve both qualitative and quantitative analysis. Researchers can overcome the barriers interdisciplinary collaboration poses by ensuring that the project is led by academics who have extensive experience in interdisciplinary collaboration and can coordinate work with participants in different disciplines. Together we believe researchers can decipher how human creativity and perseverance advance human flourishing and the wellbeing of society.

Key Indicators of Success

3: Have the studies begun and is there a sufficient number of participants? Has an index been agreed upon by all disciplines to measure creativity and flourishing?
5: Is there any indication based on preliminary research of a strong link between creative resolve and human flourishing on multiple dimensions (connection to meaning, purpose, good functioning and character, spiritual growth and resilience and hope)?
10: Has there been consensus on the societal necessity of creative resolve for flourishing? Has sufficient awareness been raised on the matter, and have more initiatives been generated to foster creative resolve as it contributes to flourishing?

Additional Information

Collaborators include:
Dr. Vincent Lloyd, Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University.
Dr. Andrew Chignell, professor at Princeton University, with appointments in Religion, Philosophy, and the University Center for Human Values.
Dr. Melissa Ferguson, Professor of Psychology at Cornell University.