Creativity and local economic development: The role of synergy among different talents

The role of creativity in local economic development has been widely discussed. The evidence on this linkage is, however, mixed. This work tries to highlight the nexus by taking into consideration a new aspect, that is, the multidimensional nature of creativity and the potential synergic and complementary effects of creative talents of different nature. The merging of talents is, indeed, a source of original, complex and synergic ideas which are at the basis of the positive relation between creativity and local development. The work addresses this issue conceptually and proves the expectations through an empirical application on Italian provinces (NUTS 3).