Recalling Ideas: Mnemonic and Attentional Inhibition in Creativity

Executive functions (updating, shifting, and inhibition) play an important role in creativity. Until now, only attentional inhibition (the Stroop effect) but not mnemonic inhibition (Thinking-Induced Forgetting, TIF) have been studied. Additionally, the temporal dynamics of the influence of the executive functions on creativity remains unknown. Using structural equation modelling and multilevel models, the relationships between both types of inhibition with creative thinking, as well as their temporal dynamics, were tested on a sample of 300 individuals. Mnemonic and attentional inhibition were shown to be independently associated with originality of thinking. Mnemonic inhibition was found to be more important in the later phases of generating ideas, while attentional inhibition was equally important throughout the idea-generation process, consistent with the predictions of the controlled attention theory of creativity. An interaction between both types of inhibition was also observed, indicating that attentional inhibition may be a prerequisite for mnemonic inhibition.