Dr. R. Keith Sawyer, a professor of psychology and education at Washington University in St. Louis, is one of the country’s leading scientific experts on creativity and learning. Explaining Creativity: The Science of Human Innovation, was the first accessible introduction to the new science of creativity. Since receiving his Ph.D. in 1994, he has dedicated his career to research on collaboration and group creativity. He is the Editor of the recently released The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences. Dr. Sawyer’s writings emphasize the importance of creativity in today’s global economy, and show how schools can redesign classrooms to result in more creative graduates. He is currently at work on a new book, Group Genius, The Secrets of Breakthrough Creativity.

Dr. Sawyer combines his scientific expertise with a strong hands-on background in real-world creativity. After receiving his computer science degree from MIT in 1982, he began his career with a two-year stint designing videogames for Atari. His titles included Food Fight, Neon, and Magician. From 1984 to 1990, he was a principal at Kenan Systems Corporation, where he worked as a management consultant on innovative technologies. His clients included Citicorp, AT&T, and U.S. West. Since receiving his Ph.D. in 1994, he has dedicated his career to research on collaboration and group creativity. He has been a jazz pianist for over 20 years, and spent several years playing piano with Chicago improv theater groups.

Dr. Sawyer has published widely on creativity, learning, and play. His previous seven books include Creating Conversations and Group Creativity, and he has published over 50 scientific articles.