Flow

Mihaly Csikszent

Harper Collins, Mar 13, 1991 - Psychology - 303 pages

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's famous investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an experience genuinely satisfying is a state of consciousness called flow. During flow, people typically experience deep enjoyment, creativity, and a total involvement with life. In this new edition of his groundbreaking classic work, Csikszentmihalyi demonstrates the ways this positive state can be controlled, not just left to chance. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience teaches how, by ordering the information that enters our consciousness, we can discover true happiness and greatly improve the quality of our lives.

What people are saying

Review: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

User Review  - Tom - Goodreads

Mihaly does not shy from the most difficult and universal questions of life, nor is he afraid to offer bold answers. "Flow" is about, quite frankly, how to enjoy life. Mihaly has compiled ...

Review: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

User Review  - Brad Henderson - Goodreads

3.5 stars. The idea of flow, made popular by this book is excellent. But I personally may have been slightly disappointed because I had already heard so much about the book and the idea of flow before ...

About the author

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced "ME-high CHICK-sent-me-high-ee) is a professor and former chairman of the Department of English at the University of Chicago. His writings have focused on models of enjoyment and how various people access their creative potential. The idea of creative potential, which Csikszentmihalyi terms "flow" has become increasingly popular in the public sector. His 1993 book, Flow, inspired Jimmy Johnson then coach of the World Champion Dallas Cowboys, and was the subject of a feature story during that year's Super Bowl television broadcast. His ideas have also been touted by President Clinton, who called Csikszentmihalyi one of his favorite authors, Newt Gingrich, who put his work on the reading list for a political planning committee, and corporations and cultural institutions, such as Volvo in Sweden and the Chicago Park District. He has published articles in a variety of magazines, including Psychology Today, The New York Times, Omni, and Wired and has made appearances on television in the U.S. and Europe. Csikszentmihalyi currently serves on boards and commissions for the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education, and the Social Science Research Council. He has held visiting professorships at universities in the United States, Canada, Brazil, Italy, and Finland. He received the1990 NRPA National Research (Roosevelt) Award, in addition to two Senior Fulbright Fellowships. Besides Flow, he has also written Beyond Boredom and Anxiety and Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention, in which he applies his "flow" theory to various inventors, scientists, and artists to determine how and why they achieve "flow.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Flow; Volume 10 of Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
• Author: Mihaly Csikszent
• Edition: reprint
• Publisher: Harper Collins, 1991
• ISBN: 0060920432, 9780060920432
• Length: 303 pages
• Subjects: Psychology / General; SELF-HELP / Personal Growth / Happiness