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Richard Florida

The Rise Of The Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community And Everyday Life Hardcover – International Edition, May 1, 2002

by Richard Florida (Author)

4.4 233 ratings

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Many writers have commented on the massive social changes of the past few decades, but most of them have treated these shifts as something imposed on us, by technology or the marketplace. This is wrong, says Richard Florida: we've chosen to alter our values, work, and lifestyle, and for good economic reasons. Why have we done this?Florida finds the answer in the rise of a new social class. Like other classes, its basis is economic. Just as the feudal aristocracy derived its identity and values from its hereditary control of land and people, and the bourgeoisie derived its identity and values from its role as merchants of goods, the Creative Class derives its identity and values from its role as purveyors of creativity. When we see ourselves as "creative," our self-image affects the choices we make in every area of our lives.Based on a massive body of research, The Rise of the Creative Class chronicles the ongoing sea-change in people's choices and attitudes, and shows not only what's happening but also how it stems from a fundamental economic change. The Creative Class now comprises nearly forty million Americans, or more than 25% of all employed people. The choices these people make have already had a huge economic impact, and in the future they will determine how the workplace is organized, what companies will prosper or go bankrupt, and even which cities will thrive or wither.

Print length

416 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Basic Books
Publication date

May 1, 2002
Dimensions

6.25 x 1.5 x 9.75 inches
ISBN-10

0465024769
ISBN-13

978-0465024766
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Editorial Reviews

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Florida, an academic whose field is regional economic development, explains the rise of a new social class that he labels the creative class. Members include scientists, engineers, architects, educators, writers, artists, and entertainers. He defines this class as those whose economic function is to create new ideas, new technology, and new creative content. In general this group shares common characteristics, such as creativity, individuality, diversity, and merit. The author estimates that this group has 38 million members, constitutes more than 30 percent of the U.S. workforce, and profoundly influences work and lifestyle issues. The purpose of this book is to examine how and why we value creativity more highly than ever and cultivate it more intensely. He concludes that it is time for the creative class to grow up--boomers and Xers, liberals and conservatives, urbanites and suburbanites--and evolve from an amorphous group of self-directed while high-achieving individuals into a responsible, more cohesive group interested in the common good. Mary Whaley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"The creative-capital theory turned out - at least after preliminary testing - to provide the best explanation for Austin's high-tech transformation." -- The New York Times

"What growing numbers of people seek in their work is basically this: They want to be creative." -- Optimize Magazine

"[Florida] argues that the cities that appeal to the creative vanguard will prosper in an economy driven by inventiveness." -- Wired

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books; First Edition (May 1, 2002)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 416 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0465024769
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0465024766
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.65 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 1.5 x 9.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,817,364 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #39,366 in Sociology (Books)
- #75,785 in World History (Books)
- #149,054 in Social Sciences (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.4 233 ratings

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Richard Florida

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Author of the bestselling The Rise of the Creative Class and Who's Your City? Richard Florida is a regular columnist for The Atlantic. He has written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and other publications. His multiple awards and accolades include the Harvard Business Review's Breakthrough Idea of the Year. He was named one of Esquire magazine's Best and Brightest (2005) and one of BusinessWeek's Voices of Innovation (2006). He lives in Toronto, Canada.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5

233 global ratings

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Eric D. Brown

Interesting topic but tough to read

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 15, 2008

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This book was recommended to me by an acquaintance a few weeks ago...I'm glad they mentioned it.

The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life (Paperback) by Richard Florida is an informative book that covers A LOT of ground and has A LOT of data....but not as much "information" as I would have expected. Let me explain.

The premise of this book is that society today is that a new Creative Class exists and is driving the way we live today. Florida uses this creative class to explain why societal changes and patterns of living as well as why some cities are more attractive than others (e.g., Silicon Valley vs Oklahoma City).

The question behind much of the research for the book is:

How do we decide where to live and work? What really matters to us in making this kind of life decision? How has this changed - and why?

This is an interesting question...and one that Florida tries to answer throughout the book by using statistics, quotes from other authors and a good deal of words.

The first 3/4's of the book is dedicated to describing the Creative Class, how they live and work and why they are different from their 'parents'. There is a ton of data and a lot of time is spent by Florida quoting research, arguing against other theorists and using statistics to "make his case" that the Creative Class is the most important class of our time. During this portion of the book, Florida makes the argument that there is a strong correlation between those cities/regions that are more tolerant and the number of creative class works that live and work in the area.

One interesting section of the book describes the changing work environment that is making it possible for people to set their own schedules, work from home and be much less constrained by the old '8 to 5' mentality that has been a part of American business for so long.

The last quarter of the book describes how cities and regions have developed themselves into a magnet for the creative class. Florida states that in order for a city (or region) to become a 'creative class' magnet, they must have the "3T's of Economic Development"...Technology, Talent and Tolerance. A brief description of each follows.

* Technology - a city/region much have the technological infrastructure in place to fuel a creative and entrepreneurial culture.
* Talent - A city/region must have a talented and highly educated workforce
* Tolerance - A city/region much have a high tolerance level and not try to force people to 'fit in'

The topic of the book was interesting to me but the delivery was somewhat confusing and poorly constructed. Many times I got lost in the middle of a paragraph and had to start over...this from a guy who reads many many books a year on various topics. I'm used to reading dry material...but this was worst than most.

Chapters 6 through 9 are probably the most interesting and descriptive of the book. These chapters describe the reasons behind why people in my generation (and those younger than me) are looking for more than 'just a job' and why many people are tiring of the '8 to 5' experience.

With that said, I would still recommend this book to those folks interested in the topic of economic development, regional development, city planning or just a general review of social science literature. If you pick up this book, take my advice and skim it rather than read every word...there is a lot of "stuff" that isn't relevant to the overall message of the book.

14 people found this helpful

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Adam Harpool

The Economics of Creativity: Common-sense, yet novel

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 6, 2008

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Upon a cursory glance, Richard Florida's theories regarding the factors that empower truly dynamic, prosperous cities resonate as highly embellished common sense: open-minded, diverse cities (i.e., New York, Chicago) have always and will always outperform more close-minded, culturally heterogeneous places such as Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. But look deeper, and what you discover is a truly unique view - and in my opinion, a correct analysis - of a fundamental shift in the orientation of our society's workforce and economic structure, transcending even the oft-accepted "intellectual capital" approach to urban success.

Essentially, Florida argues that an active fostering of the "3 T's" - technology, talent, tolerance - will be key to cities/urban areas wishing to thrive in the next century; and that a new class of knowledge professionals has emerged, coalescing around work that requires some degree of "creative" thought. This new creative class includes two components: a "super-creative core" consisting of scientists, artists, and engineers, along with more tertiary professionals such as accountants, lawyers, IT professionals, and financial analysts. The creative class, it is quantitatively demonstrated, has led the nation in job creation and income growth, and with the rise of global economic integration (i.e., globalization) and competition from low-wage countries for basic service-level jobs, the creative class will continue to ascend into a role of economic primacy. The cities that thrive in the next century will be the "creative centers"; places like San Francisco, Atlanta, and Denver that actively nurture the 3 T's. These will be the cities that combine a strong technology-empowered economy with highly-educated citizens and a tolerance for immigrants and alternative lifestyles, best exemplified by the presence of "bohemians" (i.e., artists and other "quirky" intellectual types) and gays. The emphasis on the latter two groups has brought Florida's work under attack from many social conservatives, but facts remain facts: as Florida clearly demonstrates, cities that are tolerant of all forms of diversity have fared better and will almost certainly continue to fare better than those who uphold exclusionary, bigoted social agendas.

Of course, this is a gross oversimplification of Dr. Florida's theories. Much attention is focused on the social and economic developments that preceded the emergence of this new social model; methods for rating the creativity of cities (an overall "creative index", along with his controversial gay and bohemian indexes); and a discussion of how some cities have succeeded in becoming creative centers, while others have failed.

Whether for urban theorists/students of urban theory, leaders in municipal governments, or social scholars, Dr. Florida's work in The Rise of the Creative Class sheds great insight into one of the most important emerging trends in the early 21st Century.

6 people found this helpful

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Andrew Howell

Fascinating and thought provoking stuff

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 8, 2002

Verified Purchase

Creative people cluster in cities, but in those cities which offer them the kinds of lifestyle and diversity that they are looking for. Gone are the days when key staff accept the need to be mobile, to follow the employer. Today employers are relocating to those cities that are home to 'the creative class'.
Cities with sizable clusters of the creative class are those which are the most innovative. Why are some so much better than other?
Florida's book draws on years of solid work and explores the development of the new 'creative class', the conditions in which they thrive and the challenges presented to those cities which want to develop and innovate.
I found this a very thought provoking book. It will challenge many of those who work in the economic development arena.
If you still find Jane Jacobs inspiring 40 years on, this will be the book for you!

15 people found this helpful

Grusz Gergely

Original and thought-provoking

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 7, 2015

Verified Purchase

It is a compelling, clever and very well written book, however, about 20% of it is charts and graphs that are only interesting for the U.S. reader.

Robert Wentz

Eine neue Wertschätzung für Individualität

Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on August 27, 2009

Verified Purchase

Kreativität ist kein Privileg einer elitären Klasse wie Florida klarstellt, sondern sie ist - mehr oder weniger - ein Wesenszug von uns allen. Freilich müsse sie stets gefördert und erneuert werden, damit sie erhalten bleibt, sonst werde sie verkümmern. Schließlich lasse sich Kreativität nicht wie anderes Kapital einfach an die nächste Generation vererben.

Florida unterscheidet (zumindest) drei Klassen, die in jeweils drei verschiedenen Wirtschaftssystemen anzutreffen sind: die Arbeiterklasse im Industriezeitalter, die Dienstleistungsklasse in der postindustriellen Gesellschaft und die Kreative Klasse, die ein neues Kreatives Zeitalter herbeiführen werde. Der wichtigste Unterschied zwischen der Kreativen Klasse und den beiden anderen bestehe darin, dass die Arbeiter- und die Dienstleistungsklasse dafür bezahlt würden, dass sie bestimmte vorgegebene Anordnungen ausführen, während die Kreative Klasse dafür bezahlt werde, dass sie etwas Neues schafft; überdies würden Kreative über mehr Autonomie und Flexibilität in ihrer Arbeit verfügen. Zu den Kreativen zählt Florida nicht nur jene, die herkömmlich als kreativ angesehen werden wie z. B. Musiker, Bildhauer, Maler, Schriftsteller und Schauspieler, sondern auch Wissenschaftler, Architekten, Ingenieure, Software-Spezialisten, u. a.

Im Gegensatz zum herkömmlichen Prinzip, wonach Menschen dorthin gehen, wo es Arbeit gibt, versucht Florida in seinem Buch aufzuzeigen, dass es die neue aufstrebende Klasse von "Kreativen" an jene Orte hinzieht, die tolerant und offen sind und die über bestimmte Annehmlichkeiten verfügen, welche einen entsprechenden Lebensstil ermöglichen und fördern. Es sei also nicht so wie vielleicht manche im Zeitalter des Internets meinen, dass Geografie keine Rolle mehr spiele und der Ort eine vernachlässigbare Größe werde. Das Gegenteil sei der Fall: Wie früher wirtschaftliches Wachstum häufig von den jeweils vorhandenen natürlichen Resourcen eines Ortes abhing, so seien kreative Menschen heute die Schlüsselresource für wirtschaftliche Entwicklung - und diese Schlüsselresource sei höchst mobil! Florida sieht jene Orte im Vorteil, denen es gelingt, folgende 3 T's anzubieten: Technologie, Talent und Toleranz. Kreative Leute würden sich am ehesten dort niederlassen, wo diese drei Faktoren als gesellschaftliche Realität existieren und aktiv gefördert werden.

Die Zunahme und Konzentration kreativer Menschen an bestimmten Orten habe nicht nur ökonomische Folgen, sie bringe auch einen gesellschaftlichen und kulturellen Wandel mit sich. Denn die Werteinstellungen der Kreativen Klasse würden sich stark von traditionellen Anschauungen unterscheiden: Anstelle von Konformität und Anpassung schätzen Kreative Individualität, Selbstverwirklichung und Toleranz.

Obwohl kreative Menschen die amerikanische Gesellschaft heute am stärksten prägen, da sie an zentralen Schalthebeln der Macht in Politik, Medien und Wissenschaft tätig sind, würden sie sich nicht als Mitglieder einer Klasse verstehen wie Florida anmerkt. Sie seien sich der Existenz einer Kreativen Klasse nicht nur nicht bewusst, sondern auch viel zu beschäftigt mit ihrem eigenen Privatleben und deshalb unfähig, die Geschicke der Gesellschaft in eine bestimmte Richtung zu lenken. Andererseits werde das neue Kreative Wirtschaftssystem nicht von selbst alle sozialen Probleme moderner Gesellschaften lösen, ja es könnte einige sogar verschlimmern, wenn es nicht kontrolliert werde.

Eine starke Kreative Wirtschaft sei in einer fragmentierten Gesellschaft aber kaum aufrechtzuerhalten. Deshalb seien unsere wirtschaftlichen und gesellschaftlichen Herausforderungen untrennbar miteinander verknüpft. Pluralistische und offene Städte hätten einen überzeugenden Wettbewerbsvorteil, wenn es darum geht, Kreativität zu fördern, Innovationen sowie steigenden Wohlstand und wirtschaftliches Wachstum zu verwirklichen. Den Schlüssel zur Herstellung des dafür notwendigen sozialen Zusammenhalts sieht Florida allerdings nicht wie Robert Putnam in einer romantisierenden Neubelebung traditionellen Sozialkapitals.

Richard Florida trifft in diesem Buch wohl ein wichtiges Charakteristikum heutiger Zeit, nämlich eine neue Wertschätzung für Individualität. Ob der Begriff "Kreative Klasse" hier jedoch glücklich gewählt ist, darf bezweifelt werden. Auch ist der Maßstab für Toleranz, den Florida anhand eines Homosexuellen-Indexes erhebt, nicht sehr überzeugend. Lässt sich wirklich anhand der Anzahl Homosexueller in einer Stadt das Ausmaß an Toleranz messen? Weiters dürfte die Mobilität der Kreativen in den USA nicht ohne Weiteres auf die europäische Situation übertragbar sein: Wieviele übersiedeln hier in eine andere Stadt nur weil sie "hipper" ist?

Trotz dieser kritischen Anmerkungen kann ich das Buch zur Lektüre sehr empfehlen, da es viele wertvolle Anregungen zum Weiterdenken bietet.

14 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Not worth the hype

Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on April 2, 2018

Verified Purchase

Now completely outdated - I just couldnt keep reading this book, even though it relates to some important topics on urban planning, policy and city development. For anyone interested in the 'creative class' or better said, the creative economy - don't bother - according to Florida's definition - the creative class are just about anyone who is not operating a machine. Terribly broad and boring. The new version has an introduction which is Florida's opportunity to rant about the well deserved critique he received after releasing the book - and comes across childish. I expected more.

2 people found this helpful

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Eleonora M.

ottimo libro

Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on August 23, 2017

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Si tratta di un libro impegnativo per la lunghezza, ma penso che valga ogni pagina! Non e una lettura facile e leggera, ma i concetti sono espressi molto chiaramente. Per chi vuole capire meglio la definizione di creative economy e come funziona la creative class e il libro perfetto. Molto soddisfatta dell'acquisto!

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