CREATIVE SELF AND CREATIVE LABOUR
The concepts ‘creative self’ and ‘creative labour’ came into prominence together with the notion of creativity, which has itself become central in the cultural sector over the last thirty years. During this period, the conception of culture as resulting from creative activity rather than a wider social investment has been key to the emergence of the idea of ‘creative industries’, itself occupying a central position in the recent dynamics of European cultural policy.
The current enhancement of the creativity of individuals and the recognition of certain types of labour as creative can be seen as the logical consequence of a creativity-centred conception of culture.
Enhancing the creativity of individuals in the form of the ‘creative self’ implies an attempt to develop a sense of singular creative potential. This includes a reflexion on the need for ‘self-expression’ in the context of labour, as well as most often psychological theorising of the ‘creative self’ and measurement of ‘creative self-efficacy’. Developing the creative self is said to involve nurturing and exploring one's creativity through experiences, learning, and self-expression. In this case, the role of cultural policy and government intervention in general would be to provide individuals with good conditions for achieving the goal of developing their creative potential.
On the other hand, the debate about the significance of ‘creative labour’ has included both statistical data on the aggregate number of jobs and the sector’s share in the economy and research on the nature of this kind of work. In the latter context, creative labour has most often been related to precarious and ‘flexible’ work, implying exploitative labour conditions. Nevertheless, creativity and innovation are still claimed to be vital for maintaining ‘competitive advantage’ in a globalised ‘knowledge economy’.
The high human capital of creative workers is sometimes expected to mitigate the negative effects of unfavourable work conditions in the sector, as these workers are thought to be highly qualified, creative, and innovative. Regulation of the sector has also been viewed as difficult due to the disruptive nature of the new technologies it depends on. However, there are also voices suggesting that there should be systematic solutions to the predicaments of creative workers.
Despite research that has been done over the years on the position of workers in the creative industries, ‘creative self’ and ‘creative labour’ have remained concepts that are not easily operationalised in sociological research. The suggestion is therefore to use them in close connection with the methods used in the analyses of social inequality, such as gender inequality but also other intersecting inequalities. (FL, MP)