The ambulatory battery of creativity: Additional evidence for reliability and validity

Experiencing more meaningful coincidences is associated with more real-life creativity? Insights from three empirical studies

Literature suggests a link between creativity and the perception of meaningful patterns in random arrangements, which is coined apophenia, patternicity, synchronicity, or the experience of meaningful coincidences. However, empirical research did not establish a clear link between real-life creativity and the experience of meaningful coincidences. In this three-study approach, we consistently found a connection between the experience of meaningful coincidences and creative activities as well as creative achievements. However, we did not obtain a consistent link with openness to experience or with peoples' creative potential. By applying an internet daily diary approach, we found that the experience of meaningful coincidences fluctuates from day to day and that the number of perceived coincidences is associated with positive and negative affect. A third preregistered study showed that positive and negative affect might not serve as a strong mechanism that mediates the link between meaningful coincidences and real-life creative activities. We need further research to explore the reason for this robust link between meaningful coincidences and real-life creativity.

Dynamic heartbeat tracking beyond the laboratory: Introducing the novel Graz Ambulatory Interoception Task (GRAIT)

We present a novel ambulatory method, the Graz Ambulatory Interoception Task (GRAIT), to assess the accuracy of interoceptive beliefs (AccIB). This method captures both between- and within-person variations of AccIB by having participants counting perceived heartbeats in daily life. Reliability analyses showed high between-person (RkR = 0.99) and moderate within-person reliability (RCn = 0.62). Validity was supported by associations with an established laboratory task (r = 0.87). Within-person associations revealed that interoceptive sensibility, heart rate variability, and states of low arousal coupled with positive affect were linked to AccIB. Study 2 replicated these findings and showed a relationship between AccIB and self-control in everyday life, highlighting the importance of cardiac interoception and its relevance for health.

Functional brain activation patterns of creative metacognitive monitoring

Creative metacognitive monitoring represents the ability to accurately evaluate the quality of own ideas during idea generation. To the best of our knowledge, this study presents the first EEG investigation of creative metacognitive monitoring in the brain, using data, of 100 participants, who generated single, original uses of common objects (alternate uses task). After each response, participants subjectively rated the creative quality of their idea. Additionally, five independent external judges rated the creative quality of all ideas. The correspondence between the subjective and the external performance ratings served as a measure of monitoring accuracy. We applied a generalized linear mixed effects model to investigate effects of creative metacognitive monitoring and creative potential on EEG activity in the alpha band at idea and person level. Participants with both higher monitoring skills and higher creative potential showed stronger alpha power decreases at parietal/occipital sites during creative idea generation and evaluation. Interestingly, only more creative people with lower metacognitive monitoring skills showed the expected alpha power increases at parietal/occipital sites during both phases. Furthermore, metacognitive monitoring skills were associated with lower frontal and temporal/central alpha power during idea evaluation (compared to generation) at the person level. This pattern of findings seems to suggest that less internal attention, less memory load, and increased sensory processing are associated with more effective and accurate monitoring of the creative process. This study sheds first light on the brain mechanisms underlying the interplay of creative metacognitive monitoring skills and creative potential.