关键词: 模糊容忍性, 发散性思维, I型认识兴趣, D型认识兴趣

Abstract: Ambiguity tolerance mainly refers to the individual's acceptance of ambiguity situations. Most researchers believe that ambiguity tolerance is one of the important personality traits affecting divergent thinking, and it has a positive predictive effect on divergent thinking. But other studies have found no significant correlation between the two. One of the reasons for the inconsistency may be that the previous studies did not consider the third variable affecting the relationship between the two. At the same time, epistemic curiosity is closely related to ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking. Therefore, this study included epistemic curiosity to further explore the internal mechanism between ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking. This study suggested two propositions. Firstly, according to Interest-Deprivation /Wanting and Liking Model theory, ambiguity tolerance is associated with I-type epistemic curiosity, which in turn is associated with divergent thinking. It could be hypothesized that I-type epistemic curiosity mediates the relationship between ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking. Secondly, previous studies have shown that D-type epistemic curiosity may have a potential influence on the relationship between ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking. Therefore, we also aimed to examine whether D-type epistemic curiosity plays a moderating role in the direct effect of ambiguity tolerance on divergent thinking. A total of 543 students from two universities in Xi’an completed the questionnaires measuring ambiguity tolerance (MSTAT), epistemic curiosity as a feeling of interest (CFI), epistemic curiosity as a feeling of deprivation (CFD) and divergent thinking (TTCT). Then, a hypothetical moderated mediation model was formulated to examine the effects of ambiguity tolerance on divergent thinking and the mediating role of I-type epistemic curiosity, as well as the moderating role of D-type epistemic curiosity. The results showed that: (1) Ambiguity tolerance indirectly and positively influenced three indicators of divergent thinking through I-type epistemic interest. (2) D-type epistemic curiosity moderated the association between ambiguity tolerance and originality, flexibility. Only at the high level of D-type epistemic interest, ambiguity tolerance significantly predicted originality, flexibility. And in the relationship between ambiguity tolerance and fluency, the moderating effect of D-type cognitive interest is not significant. From the theoretical perspective, as far as we know, it is the first study that combine ambiguity tolerance, I-type epistemic curiosity and divergent thinking, which can provide a constructive perspective to unravel the underlying mechanism between ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking. Furthermore, the study found that I-type epistemic curiosity plays a full mediating role between ambiguity tolerance and originality, flexibility, fluency, and D-type epistemic curiosity regulates the relationship between ambiguity tolerance and originality, flexibility. Different epistemic curiosity has different mechanisms between ambiguity tolerance and divergent thinking, which provides a new perspective to explain the dispute between the two.

Key words: Ambiguity Tolerance, Divergent Thinking, Epistemic Curiosity as a Feeling of Interest, Epistemic Curiosity as a Feeling of Deprivation