Lofty Aims, Limited Actors, Fewer Artifacts: A Sociocultural Analysis of Confucian Conceptions of Creativity and Innovation

Confucianism is often criticized as a disincentive for creativity and innovation. This article investigated Confucian conceptions of creativity and innovation from a sociocultural perspective using Glaveanu's Five A framework. Confucian aims of creation and innovation were lofty, but the range of people who could create was exclusionary, pathways to creative achievements were relatively narrow, and thus fewer creative artifacts were produced by Confucians. At the same time, Confucian thought contains a more nuanced conceptualization of both appropriateness/usefulness and aim/purpose than is found in contemporary, largely Western approaches to creativity and innovation. Based on the conceptual analysis, the authors recommend adding a sixth A, aim, to the 5A sociocultural framework.