Below is a list of current projects that vary greatly in both their degree of progress and the proportion of research time devoted to each. Some listed items may be under various stages of peer review, and thus may be further revised. But as the list nears the end it becomes increasingly a “wish list” or even “bucket list.” Perhaps at best no more than my own péchés de vieillesse or, even worse, aus der Werkstatt eines Invaliden.
Expertise acquisition and expert performance: Individual differences. In A. M. Williams, A. Kozbelt, R. Preckel, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance (3rd ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press.
- Revision accepted for publication, awaiting contract.
An abbreviated autobiography of a single-case historiometrician (for special issue of Clio’s Psyche)
- Revision in review.
Composition in classical music: Historiometric perspectives. In In P. Juslin (Ed.), Handbook of music and emotion: Theory, research, applications (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
- First draft in review.
Creativity and genius. In R. Reiter-Palmon & J. Katz-Buonincontro (Eds.), APA handbook of creativity. Washington DC: American Psychological Association.
- First draft completed; due August 15, 2025 [SimontonCaGAPAHoC].
Why even creative masterpieces contain few creative ideas: Domain-specific expertise versus combinatorial creativity.
- A theoretical treatment of the relative involvement of “blindness” and “sightedness” in creativity, with special treatment of the contrasts between the arts and sciences.
Exploring longitudinal relations among narcissism, fame, and creativity: An archival study of eminent writers (with R. I. Damian, R. W. Robins, & K. Grimm).
- Data collected, preliminary statistics completed, results already presented at professional meetings (by the first author, Damian), but not yet written up (N = 10).
Military leadership: Strategic zeitgeist versus tactical genius on the battlefield.
- Far from completion: Only have the raw data and basic sample selected, but with no variables quantified (N = 104 battles, 12 generals); worse yet, the data are all collected in “old style” – 5 x 8 inch index cards!
Disciplinary series, creativity, personality, and development: A meta-analysis.
- Have most of the required publications, but far from all (originally planned collaboration with R. I. Damian); may not happen.
Personality, theory, and methodology in 54 eminent psychologists.
- Data collected on most of the 54, but still missing data on some of the more obscure figures; it is possible that the original project cannot be completed as envisioned (cf. Overskeid, Grønnerød, & Simonton, 2012, which deals with just one of the 54 in the sample).
The tortoise and the hare: Enduring versus transient achievement.
- Preliminary data for the first wave, but not for the last wave.
Individual and situational factors behind historical continuity.
- Just a vague set of conjectures at this point.
Analytical creativity in political, cultural, and geographic exile: Jewish philosophical and theological genius in the diaspora.
- This very tentative title reflects recurrent speculations stimulated by previous and ongoing research on minorities, women, bilingualism, multiculturalism, and comparative civilizations (especially Islam).
The genius as the creator of history: A psychology of civilization.
- A basic outline has been drafted, but its specific contents are under constant revision, especially in light of more recent empirical and theoretical work by myself and others. A constantly moving target.