mental illness

The Real Link Between the Psychopathology Spectrum and the Creativity Spectrum

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This article by Scott Barry Kaufman originally appeared on Scientific American on 9/15/14.

Plato once noted that “creativity is a divine madness, a gift from gods.” Romantic notions of the link between mental illness and creativity still appear prominently in popular culture. But ever since scientists started formally investigating the link, there has been intense debate. Some of the most highly cited studies on the topic have been criticized on the grounds that they involve highly specialized samples with weak and inconsistent methodologies and a strong dependence on subjective and anecdotal accounts.

What has become much clearer, however, is that there is a real link between creativity and a number of traits and characteristics that are associated with mental illness. Once we leave the narrowed confines of the clinical setting and enter the larger general population, we see that mental disorders are far from categorical. Every single healthy human being lies somewhere on every psychopathology spectrum (e.g., schizophrenia, autism, mood disorders). What’s more, we each show substantial fluctuations on each of these dimensions each day, and across our lifespan.

A major issue in attempting to scientifically study the link between the various dimensions of psychopathology and creativity is the outcome measure. What should we be predicting? Because here’s the thing: Creativity also lies on a spectrum, ranging from the everyday creative cognition that allows us to generate new ideas, possibilities, and solutions to a problem, to the real-world creative achievement seen in publicly recognized domains across the arts, humanities, and sciences. Therefore, the link to psychopathology spectrum disorders may differ depending on the outcome.

Enter a new study by Darya Zabelina, David Condon, and Mark Beeman. They examined whether levels of psychopathology in a healthy non-clinical sample are associated with creative cognition and real-world creative achievement among a group of 100 participants, aged 18-30. None had been hospitalized for psychiatric or neurological reasons, and none abused alcohol or drugs.

 

Click here to read the full article on Scientific American.

 

Psychology in Fiction Q&A: Splitting and Alter Egos

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This post by Carolyn Kaufman originally appeared on her Archetype Writing site in July of 2010.

QUESTION: My MC (Andrew) exhibits many symptoms of borderline personality disorder, including splitting. With the splitting, he basically thinks of himself as a “good” Andrew and a “bad” Andrew. In his thoughts, the good part of him (whom he calls Leif) talks with the bad part. At first, it’s just jumbled thought, sometimes doesn’t make sense, and as it progresses, it develops two distinct voices. He thinks the bad Andrew is just worthless and a street whore (he’s a prostitute) and the good Andrew is who he is trying to change into, to fix his life. I don’t think this is split personality or multiple personalities because they are aware of each other, and it really is like two aspects of the same thing. Does this make sense, psychologically? Is it still borderline, or is this something else?

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ANSWER: It sounds like you’ve got the gist of splitting, which is pretty commendable, since it’s a tough concept. Typically, though, adult splitting is seen as a kind of defense mechanism, so people aren’t really aware that they’re doing it.

Let me explain splitting a little more, just so that makes sense, and then we’ll talk about what might work well for your story.

According to object relations theorists like Melanie Klein, newborns essentially believe that the world is part of the same entity as them. In other words, they can’t differentiate between themselves and the world. Later, they differentiate between “me” and the world, but Mommy (or Daddy, or whoever the primary caregiver is) is seen as part of “me.” Still later, the child begins to understand that “me” and Mommy are different, but they have trouble seeing “good Mommy” (who acquiesces to them and fulfills their needs) and “bad Mommy” who says “no” or is otherwise frustrating or disappointing as the same person. This is splitting, and it’s natural around 3-4 months of age. As we get older (i.e. around 6 months of age), we learn to see “good Mommy” and “bad Mommy” as part of the same person. That’s why we can love and hate someone at the same time.

 

Click here to read the full post on Archetype Writing.