Creativity and mental illness

Mental illness and creativity are popularly considered to be related, particularly in the case of bipolar disorder. Although the association between bipolar disorder and creativity first appeared in the literature in the 1970s, the idea of a link between "madness" and "genius" is much older, dating back at least to the time of Aristotle, and reinforced by the views of the Romantic movement.

Creativity and bipolar disorder
There is a common belief, although without empirical basis, that many famous historical figures gifted with creative talents have been affected by bipolar disorder. Many of these have been retroactively "diagnosed" as suffering from bipolar disorder after their deaths based on letters, correspondence, contemporaneous accounts, or other material, most notably in Kay Redfield Jamison's book Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament. . Touched With Fire presents the argument that bipolar disorder may be found in a disproportionate numbers of people with creative talent such as artists, comedians, musicians, authors, performers, poets, and scientists, and some credit the condition for their creativity.

Several recent clinical studies have also suggested that there is a positive correlation between creativity and bipolar disorder, although it is unclear what the relationship is between the two. Temperament may be an intervening variable.

A 2005 study at the Stanford University School of Medicine showed for the first time that a sample of children who either have or are at high risk for bipolar disorder score higher on a creativity index. Children with bipolar parents who were not bipolar themselves also scored higher.