Reasoned connections: A dual-process perspective on creative thought

Abstract

A divide exists in the creativity literature as to whether relatively more or less executive processing is beneficial to creative thinking. To explore this issue, we employ an individual differences perspective informed by dual-process theories (DPTs) in which it is assumed that people vary in the extent to which they rely on autonomous (Type 1) or controlled processing (Type 2). We find that those more willing and/or able to engage Type 2 processing are more likely to successfully make creative connections in tasks requiring the unification of disparate elements and the novelty of generated items, but not in some other indices of creativity, namely, cognitive flexibility and fluency. Implications for the role of executive processing in creative thinking are discussed in the context of DPTs. We situate the ability to make remote connections alongside other advanced higher order thinking capabilities that are unique to humans.

Keywords:

• Creativity
• Analogical reasoning
• Dual-process theories
• Cognitive style
• Cognitive ability.

The authors wish to thank Dr. Linden Ball for insightful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript.

This work was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada [grant number RGPIN-327367].