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Mental imagery and creativity: a meta-analytic review study.

Nicholas LeBoutillier1, David F Marks

  • 1School of Social Science, Middlesex University, Queensway, UK. n.LeBoutillier@mdx.ac.uk

British Journal of Psychology (London, England : 1953)
|March 22, 2003
PubMed
Summary

Creative individuals often report using mental imagery. However, meta-analytic tests reveal a weak association between individual differences in mental imagery and creativity, explaining only a small portion of the variance.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Psychology of Creativity

Background:

  • Anecdotal evidence suggests mental imagery is crucial for creativity in science and art.
  • Previous research explored the link between mental imagery and creativity, primarily using the individual differences approach.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To meta-analytically assess the association between individual differences in mental imagery and creativity.
  • To investigate potential reasons for the observed variance in creativity linked to mental imagery.

Main Methods:

  • Conducted systematic database searches to identify relevant studies.
  • Applied conservative selection criteria to 18 papers using the individual differences approach.
  • Performed meta-analytic tests on nine selected studies (N=1494).

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Main Results:

  • A statistically significant, but marginal, positive correlation was found between mental imagery and creativity (Fisher's Z).
  • Little difference in divergent thinking was observed across various forms and types of self-reported imagery.
  • Mental imagery accounted for less than 3% of the variance in creativity measures.

Conclusions:

  • The individual differences approach indicates a weak link between self-reported mental imagery and creativity.
  • Task validity and study design issues may explain the limited variance accounted for.
  • Further research is needed to understand the role of mental imagery in creative processes.