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Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
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psychologist
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"
I... have a naive trust in the universe –– that at some level it all makes sense, and we can get glimpses of that sense if we try."
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How were you originally motivated to become a psychologist? |
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As a child in WWII Europe, I was dismayed to find out that grownups had no
idea what was going on, and were helpless to extricate themselves from the
mess they had created. I resolved to figure out how one could live a better
life, and tried many things –– art, fiction, philosophy, working in youth
organizations, etc. I discovered psychology through the writings of
C.J. Jung, and thought that perhaps this was the best way to understand
behavior and history. I can't say I have, but in the process I learned a
lot and had a good time.
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What can you share about your creative process? |
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Not much, except that I seem to have a synthetic approach to experience
(seeing similarities between events and things even when there aren't) and I
get interested in figuring them out. I have large doses of that "naivete"
that Goethe thought was important for creativity –– e.g. I don't understand
a lot of things others take for granted, and I am left cold by fads such as
postmodernism, etc. This makes it seem that my ideas are "original" because
they diverge from whatever is popular at the time. I also seem to have a
naive trust in the universe –– that at some level it all makes sense, and
we can get glimpses of that sense if we try. I also love to write, and my
ideas develop as I try to make myself clearer in the process of writing.
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What ideas do you have for a future human community on Mars?
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I think it would be neat. I understand, however, that some of the
physiological (e.g. deterioration of muscle in zero gravity) and
psychological problems (e.g. getting along with crewmates after being
cooped up for an at least 6–month flight, etc.) are still rather
untractable. But hey, if Columbus made it, I am sure we can too (though
don't count me in –– at the age of 94 I'd prefer to sit in a Barca–lounger
sipping mulled wine and reading a good book).
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