# Towards a Theory of Creativity

*Rogers · Origins, Trust & Interpersonal · ETC: A Review of General Semantics (1954); reprinted in Vernon, Creativity (1970) · 1954 · Open access*

The paper that coined the term 'psychological safety'. Rogers argued that creativity requires two external conditions: psychological safety — established through unconditional worth, absence of external evaluation, and empathic understanding — and psychological freedom. Predates Schein & Bennis by eleven years and Kahn by 36.

- **This page:** https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/rogers-1954/
- **View the source paper:** https://psychsafety.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Carl-Rogers-psych-safety-in-1970-vernon-creativity.pdf
- **Interactive map:** https://explore.psychsafety.com/?mode=papers&node=rogers-1954

## Connected concepts (6)

- [Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/kahn-1990.md) (paper)
- [What is PS?](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/about-psychological-safety.md)
- [Personal and Organizational Change Through Group Methods: The Laboratory Approach](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/schein-bennis-1965.md) (paper)
- [Psychological Safety Comes of Age: Observed Themes in an Established Literature](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/edmondson-bransby-2023.md) (paper)
- [History of PS](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/the-history-of-psychological-safety.md)
- [PS & Creativity](https://explore.psychsafety.com/n/psychological-safety-and-creativity.md)