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Gender and Innovation in the New Economy pp 135–168Cite as

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Creative Work and Gender

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Abstract

What is considered to be creative work? Is creative work always recognizable as in artistic work, or is it something where inventions come into being, or simply any task at hand? How does creativity construct individual identity, especially work identity? And how does gender become defined in creative work leading to innovations? Creativity is in some ways surely part of every work task and its performance, from even the most repetitive and standardized job tasks to the most unpredictable problem solving and unique artistic performances. Given this wide definition, the value and importance of creative work in the contemporary economy is omnipresent. This concerns the gendered nature of creative work in relation to innovations also: the technological solutions we have discussed in earlier chapters, from the washing machine to the fitness and wearable technologies, show how embedded creativity is in the innovation, design and production of material and immaterial goods and services. This chapter examines the complexities of gender, technology, care and creativity in contemporary work and economy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Seppo Poutanen

  2. Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Anne Kovalainen

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  1. Seppo Poutanen
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Poutanen, S., Kovalainen, A. (2017). Creative Work and Gender. In: Gender and Innovation in the New Economy. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-52702-8_5

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