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Boosting Creativity, but Only for Low Creative Connectivity: The Moderating Effect of Priming Stereotypically
Fangfang Wen1,2,3, Bin Zuo1,2,3, Zhijie Xie1,2
1School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China.
Frontiers in Psychology
|February 27, 2019
Summary
Priming people with information that contradicts stereotypes boosts creativity, especially when the stereotype is unrelated to creative domains. This effect is moderated by how relevant a role is perceived to be for creativity.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Previous research indicates that priming individuals with stereotypically inconsistent information enhances creativity.
- The current study investigates the moderating influence of creativity connectivity on this phenomenon.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine how creativity connectivity moderates the creativity-boosting effects of stereotypically inconsistent information (SICI) priming.
- To replicate and extend previous findings within a Chinese cultural context.
Main Methods:
- Two studies were conducted with college students in Wuhan.
- Study 1 used a 2x2 design (target gender x priming type: SCI vs. SICI) with a poster-advertising-design task.
- Study 2 used a 2x2 design (creativity-domain connectivity: high vs. low x priming type: SCI vs. SICI) with similar tasks.
Main Results:
- Stereotypically inconsistent information priming boosted creativity compared to stereotypically consistent information (SCI) priming, replicating prior work.
- The creativity-boosting effect of SICI was significant only when the primed information had low creativity-domain connectivity (e.g., 'male nurse').
- No significant creativity-boosting effects were found when primed information had high creativity-domain connectivity (e.g., 'dull poet').
Conclusions:
- The findings confirm that SICI priming enhances creativity.
- Creativity connectivity significantly moderates the impact of SICI on creativity, with effects pronounced for roles less associated with creativity.
- This research extends understanding of stereotype priming and creativity in a non-Western cultural setting.
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