Season 2, Episode 6

The Role of Serendipity in Creativity and Education

Season 2, The Science of Creativity

“That’s what makes serendipity a powerful tool, is that it relies on the prepared mind and it relies on this idea of scarcity of wisdom, of using the accidents that come to you and taking advantage of them.”

– Dr. Wendy Ross

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Episode Transcription

The role of Serendipity in Creativity with Dr. Wendy Ross

How does serendipity affect creativity?

In this episode of the Fueling Creativity podcast, Dr. Cyndi Burnett and Dr. Matthew Worwood speak with Dr. Wendy Ross, a cognitive scientist, senior lecturer in psychology, and Chair of the Serendipity Society. Wendy’s research looks at the role of serendipity in creativity, using everything from experimental methods to ethnographic work.

Listen in as Wendy shares her research findings on the relationship between serendipity and creativity, why serendipity is a disruptive force in learning, and the importance of students building a tolerance to failure and adversity. She also gives powerful advice for educators on implementing this knowledge around serendipity in the classroom.

They also discuss the current debates on whether the pandemic has increased or decreased feelings of serendipity, as well as what teachers can do foster a norm of working through discomfort and mistakes. 

Wendy’s Tips for Teachers:

  1. Encourage your students to get comfortable with discomfort and failure.
  2. Generate interesting environments with many different moments of inspiration and pathways of creativity.
  3. Most serendipity comes from interactions with people, not with things.

About the Guest

Wendy’s main topic of research is the role of material serendipity in higher cognitive processes such as insight problem solving and creativity. She draws on a range of methods from eye-tracking and experimental psychology to focused cognitive ethnography. She is currently co-editing two collections on serendipity: The Art of Serendipity (Palgrave) and Serendipity Science (Springer). She is Co-Chair of the Serendipity Society and Vice President of the Possibility Studies Network. In 2021, she was awarded the Frank  Barron prize by Division 10 of the APA.

Connect with Wendy:

Connect with her on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-ross-670487191 

Episode Debrief

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Podcast Sponsor

We are thrilled to partner with Curiosity 2 Create as our sponsor, a company that shares our commitment to fostering creativity in education. Curiosity 2 Create empowers educators through professional development and community support, helping them integrate interactive, creative thinking approaches into their classrooms. By moving beyond traditional lecture-based methods, they help teachers create dynamic learning environments that enhance student engagement, improve academic performance, and support teacher retention. With a focus on collaborative learning and exploration, Curiosity 2 Create is transforming classrooms into spaces where students thrive through continuous engagement and growth.

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