Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi was born on September 29, 1934 in Fiume, Italy (now Rijeka, Croatia). He was a writer, known for The Flow (2018), Flow (2011) and Innovation: Where Creativity and Technology Meet (2013). He was married to Isabella (Selega) and Isabella Selega. He died on October 20, 2021 in Claremont, California, USA.
He was inspired to study psychology after attending a lecture in Switzerland by psychiatrist Carl Jung.
He graduated from the University of Chicago, where he received a doctorate in psychology. He taught at Lake Forest College outside Chicago before joining the University of Chicago faculty.