scholarly journals Serial Order Effect in Divergent Thinking in Five- to Six-Year-Olds: Individual Differences as Related to Executive Functions

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 20
Author(s):  
Honghong Bai ◽  
Paul P. M. Leseman ◽  
Mirjam Moerbeek ◽  
Evelyn H. Kroesbergen ◽  
Hanna Mulder
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Selective Attention ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Serial Order ◽  
Order Effect ◽  
Executive Processes ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Mental Operations

This study examined the unfolding in real time of original ideas during divergent thinking (DT) in five- to six-year-olds and related individual differences in DT to executive functions (EFs). The Alternative Uses Task was administered with verbal prompts that encouraged children to report on their thinking processes while generating uses for daily objects. In addition to coding the originality of each use, the domain-specific DT processes memory retrieval and mental operations were coded from children’s explanations. Six EF tasks were administered and combined into composites to measure working memory, shifting, inhibition, and selective attention. The results replicated findings of a previous study with the same children but at age four years: (1) there was a serial order effect of the originality of uses; and (2) the process mental operations predicted the originality of uses. Next, the results revealed that both domain-general EFs and domain-specific executive processes played a role in the real-time unfolding of original ideas during DT. Particularly, the DT process mental operations was positively related to the early generation of original ideas, while selective attention was negatively related to the later generation of original ideas. These findings deepen our understanding of how controlled executive processes operate during DT.

Elucidating the role of selective attention, divergent thinking, language abilities, and executive functions in metaphor generation

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 ◽  
pp. 107458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shay Menashe ◽  
Rotem Leshem ◽  
Vered Heruti ◽  
Anat Kasirer ◽  
Tami Yair ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Selective Attention ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Language Abilities

scholarly journals An Experimental Approach to Investigate the Involvement of Cognitive Load in Divergent Thinking

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Ruben Kleinkorres ◽  
Boris Forthmann ◽  
Heinz Holling
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
External Validity ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Experimental Approach ◽  
Internal Validity ◽  
Serial Order ◽  
Order Effect ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Instruction Condition ◽  
Creative Instruction

Up to now, support for the idea that a controlled component exists in creative thought has mainly been supported by correlational studies; to further shed light on this issue, we employed an experimental approach. We used four alternate uses tasks that differed in instruction type (“be fluent” vs. “be creative”) and concurrent secondary workload (load vs. no load). A total of 51 participants (39 female) went through all tasks and generated ideas for a total of 16 different objects; their responses were scored in terms of fluency (number of responses generated), creative quality, and flexibility. We did find, as expected, that the be-creative instruction resulted in fewer and more creative ideas, as well as more flexible idea sets, but neither of the expected interaction effects became significant. Specifically, fluency was not affected more strongly by secondary workload in the be-fluent instruction condition than in the be-creative instruction condition. Further, the performance drop evoked by the secondary workload was not stronger in the be-creative instruction condition compared to the be-fluent instruction condition when creative quality or flexibility were examined as dependent variable. Altogether, our results do not confirm that be-creative instructions involve more cognitive load than be-fluent instructions. Nevertheless, the analysis of the serial order effect and additional correlational examinations revealed some promising results. Methodological limitations which may have influenced the results are discussed in light of the inherent suspense between internal and external validity (i.e., most likely the applied self-paced dual-task approach increased external validity, but undermined internal validity) and potentially guide future research.

Neural correlates of serial order effect in verbal divergent thinking

2017 ◽  
Vol 99 ◽  
pp. 92-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meijuan Wang ◽  
Ning Hao ◽  
Yixuan Ku ◽  
Roland H. Grabner ◽  
Andreas Fink
Keyword(s):  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Serial Order ◽  
Order Effect ◽  
Neural Correlates

EEG alpha activity is moderated by the serial order effect during divergent thinking

2019 ◽  
Vol 145 ◽  
pp. 84-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Kraus ◽  
Chelsea Cadle ◽  
Stephanie Simon-Dack
Keyword(s):  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Serial Order ◽  
Order Effect ◽  
Alpha Activity ◽  
Eeg Alpha ◽  
Eeg Alpha Activity

Measures of RSA Suppression, Attentional Control, and Negative Affect Predict Self-Ratings of Executive Functions

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 164-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Healy ◽  
Aaron Treadwell ◽  
Mandy Reagan
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Attentional Control ◽  
Executive Processes ◽  
Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Low Levels

The current study was an attempt to determine the degree to which the suppression of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and attentional control were influential in the ability to engage various executive processes under high and low levels of negative affect. Ninety-four college students completed the Stroop Test while heart rate was being recorded. Estimates of the suppression of RSA were calculated from each participant in response to this test. The participants then completed self-ratings of attentional control, negative affect, and executive functioning. Regression analysis indicated that individual differences in estimates of the suppression of RSA, and ratings of attentional control were associated with the ability to employ executive processes but only when self-ratings of negative affect were low. An increase in negative affect compromised the ability to employ these strategies in the majority of participants. The data also suggest that high attentional control in conjunction with attenuated estimates of RSA suppression may increase the ability to use executive processes as negative affect increases.

Measurement Invariance of Divergent Thinking Across Gender, Age, and School Forms

2009 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg-Tobias Kuhn ◽  
Heinz Holling
Keyword(s):  
Measurement Invariance ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Factor Model ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Specific Model ◽  
Confirmatory Factor Analyses ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Confirmatory Factor

The present study explores the factorial structure and the degree of measurement invariance of 12 divergent thinking tests. In a large sample of German students (N = 1328), a three-factor model representing verbal, figural, and numerical divergent thinking was supported. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses revealed that partial strong measurement invariance was tenable across gender and age groups as well as school forms. Latent mean comparisons resulted in significantly higher divergent thinking skills for females and students in schools with higher mean IQ. Older students exhibited higher latent means on the verbal and figural factor, but not on the numerical factor. These results suggest that a domain-specific model of divergent thinking may be assumed, although further research is needed to elucidate the sources that negatively affect measurement invariance.

Individual Differences in Working Memory Capacity and Visual Selective Attention

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taleen Der-Ghazarian ◽  
Cynthia E. Martinez ◽  
Hideya Koshino
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Selective Attention ◽  
Working Memory Capacity ◽  
Memory Capacity ◽  
Visual Selective Attention

Individual differences in executive functions and retrieval efficacy in older adults.

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 1105-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fergus I. M. Craik ◽  
Eldar Eftekhari ◽  
Ellen Bialystok ◽  
Nicole D. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Executive Functions

Executive Functions and Metacognitive Monitoring Are Not Interchangeable in Educational Settings: Their Shared and Unique Contribution to Academic Outcomes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rina PY Lai ◽  
Michelle Renee Ellefson ◽  
Claire Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Executive Functions ◽  
Academic Outcomes ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Latent Variable ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Metacognitive Monitoring ◽  
Cognitive Predictors ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Variable Approach ◽  
Latent Variable Approach

Executive functions and metacognition are two cognitive predictors with well-established connections to academic performance. Despite sharing several theoretical characteristics, their overlap or independence concerning multiple academic outcomes remain under-researched. To address this gap, the present study applies a latent-variable approach to test a novel theoretical model that delineates the structural link between executive functions, metacognition, and academic outcomes. In whole-class sessions, 469 children aged 9 to 14 years (M = 11.93; SD = 0.92) completed four computerized executive function tasks (inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and planning), a self-reported metacognitive monitoring questionnaire, and three standardized tests of academic ability. The results suggest that executive functions and metacognitive monitoring are not interchangeable in the educational context and that they have both shared and unique contributions to diverse academic outcomes. The findings are important for elucidating the role between two domain-general cognitive skills (executive functions and metacognition) and domain-specific academic skills.

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