Creativity reconsidered - So your firm is creative, but how much? A trans-sectoral and continuous approach to creative industries

Abstract

The paper addresses the problem of conceptualization and operationalization of creative industries. It gives a short review of existing approaches and concepts and points to their limits. It suggests new ways of defining creative industries by emphasizing two aspects: the trans-sectoral character of creativity: it is not sectors that are creative per se; and that creativity has to be conceived along a continuum. On the basis of different characteristics of activities, products and services of firms, an index of creativity ranging from not creative to very creative is developed. A case study based on a survey of firms shows that there is a broad range of creative behaviour and that most firms are creative to at least some degree. This leads to new options for future research and for the analysis of spatial differences as well as to a new focus for policies in support of creativity.