A Meta-Analytic Investigation of the Relationship of State and Trait Anxiety to Performance on Figural and Verbal Creative Tasks

Abstract

Extensive research suggests when and how anxiety has debilitating or facilitating effects on routine cognitive tasks or motor tasks. However, research examining anxiety's relation to performance on creative tasks such as divergent thinking and artistic tasks is less conclusive despite a rather substantial literature. The authors' meta-analytic investigation of 59 independent samples finds that anxiety is significantly and negatively related to creative performance. In addition, the findings provide insights into factors such as task complexity, type of task (i.e., figural or verbal), and type of anxiety (i.e., state or trait) that moderate the relationship between anxiety and creativity-all of which are consistent with the idea that anxiety and creativity present competing cognitive demands. In addition to identifying gaps in the literature such as the need for research using a two-component model of anxiety in relation to creativity, the authors' results have practical implications for those seeking to increase individual creativity.

Procrastination is Detrimental to Undergraduate Students’ Self-Rated Creativity: The Mediating Role of State Anxiety

“…In addition, the literature on anxiety suggests that procrastination may paradoxically impair creativity. Specifically, studies have documented that procrastination is positively correlated with anxiety (Haycock, McCarthy, & Skay, 1998;van Eerde, 2003), with anxious people tending to have low performance in divergent thinking (Byron & Khazanchi, 2011), an index that has been widely used in creativity research. Therefore, it seems sensible to assume that procrastination is indirectly harmful to creative performance due to anxiety.…”

“…Empirical studies have found that anxiety is negatively associated with creativity (Byron & Khazanchi, 2011;Friedman & Förster, 2008). Findings for emotion and creativity indeed indicate that negative emotion such as anxiety and fear are harmful to creativity (e.g., Baas, De Dreu, & Nijstad, 2008).…”

“…Setting the task aside for a while is said to promote remote association of ideas and hence, individuals are more likely to generate novel responses (e.g., Hao, Liu, Ku, Hu, & Runco, 2015). On the contrary, literature on anxiety suggests that procrastination could be harmful to creativity (e.g., Byron & Khazanchi, 2011). Procrastinators tend to experience anxiety whereby high anxiety levels are negatively associated with creativity (Byron & Khazanchi, 2011).…”

“…On the contrary, literature on anxiety suggests that procrastination could be harmful to creativity (e.g., Byron & Khazanchi, 2011). Procrastinators tend to experience anxiety whereby high anxiety levels are negatively associated with creativity (Byron & Khazanchi, 2011). As a result, it is reasonable to believe that procrastination may impair creativity.…”

State anxiety and information processing: a 7.5% carbon dioxide challenge study

“…High trait anxiety has been associated with poorer outcomes on a number of cognitive parameters, in both animals (Herrero, Sandi, & Venero, 2006) and humans (Byron & Khazanchi, 2011;Gawda & Szepietowska, 2016). Traditionally, anxiety has been associated with a hypersensitivity to threat (Spielberger, 1972).…”