School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China.
American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology, La Jolla, CA, USA.
Conscious Cogn. 2018 Jul;62:102-109. doi: 10.1016/j.concog.2018.03.004. Epub 2018 Mar 19.
This study investigated whether the experience of "breaking the walls", the embodiment of the metaphor "breaking the rules", could enhance creative performance. The virtual reality technology was used to simulate the scenario where participants could "break the walls" while walking in a corridor. Participants were asked to solve the creativity-demanding problems (ie., alternative uses tasks, AUT) in either the "break" condition in which they had to break the walls to move forward in VR, or the "no-break" condition where no barrier walls would appear. Results showed higher AUT originality and AUT fluency in the "break" condition than in the "no-break" condition. Moreover, the effects of "breaking the walls" on AUT originality were fully mediated by cognitive flexibility and persistence. These findings may indicate that enacting metaphors such as "breaking the rules" contribute to creative performance. The enhanced cognitive flexibility and persistence may account for the benefits.
本研究旨在探讨“打破墙壁”的体验，即“打破规则”这一隐喻的体现，是否能提升创造力表现。研究采用虚拟现实技术模拟参与者在走廊行走时“打破墙壁”的情景。要求参与者在虚拟现实环境中“打破墙壁”以继续前行的“打破”条件下，或在没有障碍墙壁出现的“不打破”条件下，解决需要创造力的问题（即，用途转换任务，AUT）。结果显示，“打破”条件下的 AUT 新颖性和 AUT 流畅性均高于“不打破”条件。此外，“打破墙壁”对 AUT 新颖性的影响完全由认知灵活性和坚持度所中介。这些发现表明，实施“打破规则”等隐喻可能有助于提升创造力表现。认知灵活性和坚持度的增强可以解释其益处。
