Lectures and seminars Brain & Culture lecture ”Kreativitet och visdom i en föränderlig tid” (creativity and wisom in changing times)
Speaker: Simon Kyaga, senior consultant psychiatrist and former researcher at the Karolinska Institute
Host: Gunnar Bjursell
(PLEASE NOTE THIS LECTURE IS HELD IN SWEDISH)
About the lecture
What is creative wisdom? Is wisdom needed in modern society? And how can the pursuit of wisdom make us happier?
In recent years, research has exploded with initiatives that have taken on the concept of wisdom. This has been made possible by technological developments, which have allowed researchers to study how the brain and thinking function in ways that were not previously possible.
In the book “Wisdom for People in a Time of Change” (2023), which Simon co-authored with his mother, Katrin Goldstein Kyaga—a researcher and professor of intercultural education—they explore the meaning and function of wisdom in contemporary society. Their work draws on historical and cultural perspectives as well as current neuroscientific research.
The authors address central questions about what wisdom truly is: What does it mean to be wise? Is wisdom needed more than ever in our time? How can advances in neuroscience deepen our understanding of wisdom? And how can we ourselves develop greater wisdom? These questions are illuminated through a combination of Simon’s expertise in psychiatry—particularly his focus on the relationship between creativity and mental illness—and Katrin’s experience and research in intercultural education.
Simon Kyaga is a licensed physician and specialist in psychiatry. In 2014, he presented a widely noted doctoral dissertation at the Karolinska Institute that examined the relationship between genius and madness.