Inspiration or Fixation? Factors Influencing External Cue Effect on Creativity and the Cognitive Mechanism Underlying It

Yuan Huan; Li Nan

doi:10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240508

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Journal of Psychological Science ›› 2024, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (5) : 1096-1102. DOI: 10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240508

Inspiration or Fixation? Factors Influencing External Cue Effect on Creativity and the Cognitive Mechanism Underlying It

Yuan Huan, Li Nan

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Abstract

Providing external cues is one of the common approaches to inspire creative ideation. Though researchers tend to present external cues such as example solutions to enhance creativity, its effect is still on debate. Inspiration or fixation? The effect largely depends on factors such as cue features, form of cues, and timing. However, how do these factors interact with the creative process is still unknown. To explain the cognitive process underlying this effect, we adopted the Search for Ideas in Associative Memory theory (SIAM) and the Cognitive Network Model of Creativity theory (CNM). According to the SIAM theory, idea generation is a repeated search process in associative memory. External cues serve as the search cues that activate problem-relevant knowledge, which further facilitate idea generation. As the CNM model argues, the long-term memory is seen as an associative network and the working memory contains activated knowledge. Both theories contribute to the creative ideation.
This paper reviewed the studies of how these factors affecting creative ideation. Moreover, the two theories were used to explain the possible mechanisms underlying these factors' influence. For example, external cue features such as idea novelty and relevance function differently on creativity. Some researchers found that common ideas improved creative ideation, while others suggested that they would induce cognitive fixation and consequently block the generation of new ideas. Cues (e.g., examples) can either be novel or common, which may affect the categories of problem-relevant knowledge that are activated. This may eventually moderate the example effect on creative idea generation. According to the SIAM theory, novel examples being as searching cues may activate remote concepts in associative network which will be further combined into original ideas. However, it must be noted that the activation of associative network may be different in different stages of creative idea generation. When solving the debate on effect of external cue novelty on creativity, the creative ideation stage should be considered.
Further understanding of the mechanisms could be facilitated by focusing on experimental paradigm standardization, distinguishing different stages of creative ideation, employing multiple methods such as cognitive neuroscientific method, and stressing the individual differences of recognizing and using cues. To be specific, directions of further research are as follows. (1) Experimental paradigm should be standardized including the external cues features (e.g., idea novelty), the modality of cues, timing and type of creative tasks. (2) Multiple methods should be utilized in order to understand more about the external cue effect on creativity. These methods include observation, interview, neuroscientific methods such as EEG, fMRI, and so on. (3) As creative ideation is a dynamic process, the cognitive processes of different periods may vary in terms of associative network activation. This stage difference should be taken into consideration. (4) As people differ in their creativity, individual differences for understanding and recognizing the external cues may moderate the link between external cues and creativity. An enhanced understanding of how individuals develop their creativity surrounding the use of external cues will lead to a better understanding of creativity development and practice.

Key words

creativity / inspiration / cue feature / cue form / timing / cognitive process

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Yuan Huan, Li Nan. Inspiration or Fixation? Factors Influencing External Cue Effect on Creativity and the Cognitive Mechanism Underlying It[J]. Journal of Psychological Science. 2024, 47(5): 1096-1102 https://doi.org/10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240508

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