The role of complexity in the creative economies: connecting people, ideas and practice

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The research project explored the importance of complexity theory approaches and methods in investigating different aspects of the creative economy. It has built a knowledge community and online resources to enable researchers to consider advantages and challenges presented by complexity theory in analysing the interconnections between people, ideas and practice. Through three independent pilot studies the project engaged with different dynamics of the creative economy at different scales: from idea generation and development dynamics, to collaborative work and knowledge exchange, to reconciling production and consumption and taking into account the role of intermediaries in regional creative clusters. While engaging with key issues of the creative economy the project reflected on the advantages and challenges presented by the use of complexity theory. Overall complexity theory allows researchers to unfold dynamics of different nature and directions, giving central stage to creative agents who are shaped by these dynamics while contributing to changes within local communities, creative events and activities and regional contexts. Complexity approaches used in the pilot studies have given us a clearer understanding of the multi-scale connections which characterise the creative economy as a complex system. The challenges met during the research projects - namely considering connections vs. causality and specificity vs. comparability - provide fertile venues for further research and for further expansion on the use of complexity theory in the creative economy.