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Beyond Extremes, Intermediate Cognitive Inhibition Facilitates Creative Thinking: Behavioral and Neural Evidence in Young Adults

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Title: Beyond Extremes, Intermediate Cognitive Inhibition Facilitates Creative Thinking: Behavioral and Neural Evidence in Young Adults
Language: English
Authors: Chaoqun Ye (ORCID 0009-0000-9451-9046), Yuhong Lin, Xing Wang, Chunlei Liu, Weiping Hu (ORCID 0000-0002-1607-8713)
Source: Journal of Creative Behavior. 2026 60(1).
Availability: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 13
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Cognitive Processes, Inhibition, Creativity, Creative Thinking, Young Adults, Brain, Brain Hemisphere Functions, Executive Function, Concept Formation
DOI: 10.1002/jocb.70085
ISSN: 0022-0175
2162-6057
Abstract: The role of cognitive inhibition in creativity remains debated, with evidence pointing to both facilitative and impairing effects. To clarify this relationship, we experimentally manipulated inhibition levels (high, intermediate, low) using a cognitive resource depletion paradigm and examined their effects on creative thinking and its neural mechanisms. Behaviorally, participants with intermediate inhibition outperformed both the high and low inhibition groups in creative thinking. EEG analyses revealed enhanced alpha activity during creative ideation in the intermediate inhibition group, particularly in the frontal, fronto-central, and temporal regions in the right hemisphere, accompanied by greater cortical differentiation across frontal, central, and parietal areas. In contrast, the high inhibition group showed frontal and parietal activation differences without hemispheric asymmetry, whereas the low inhibition group exhibited neither regional differentiation nor hemispheric effects. The cortical alpha activation pattern of intermediate inhibition may reflect a dynamic balance or flexible shift between top-down cognitive control and bottom-up associative processing that optimizes creative ideation. Together, these findings offer a new perspective on the complex relationship between cognitive inhibition and creativity. More importantly, they reveal the cognitive and neural mechanisms through which cognitive inhibition regulates creative thinking, thereby deepening our understanding of the cognitive architecture underlying creativity.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1500551
Database: ERIC
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Chaoqun+Ye%22">Chaoqun Ye</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0000-9451-9046">0009-0000-9451-9046</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yuhong+Lin%22">Yuhong Lin</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Xing+Wang%22">Xing Wang</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Chunlei+Liu%22">Chunlei Liu</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Weiping+Hu%22">Weiping Hu</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1607-8713">0000-0002-1607-8713</externalLink>)
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  Data: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
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  Data: 13
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  Data: The role of cognitive inhibition in creativity remains debated, with evidence pointing to both facilitative and impairing effects. To clarify this relationship, we experimentally manipulated inhibition levels (high, intermediate, low) using a cognitive resource depletion paradigm and examined their effects on creative thinking and its neural mechanisms. Behaviorally, participants with intermediate inhibition outperformed both the high and low inhibition groups in creative thinking. EEG analyses revealed enhanced alpha activity during creative ideation in the intermediate inhibition group, particularly in the frontal, fronto-central, and temporal regions in the right hemisphere, accompanied by greater cortical differentiation across frontal, central, and parietal areas. In contrast, the high inhibition group showed frontal and parietal activation differences without hemispheric asymmetry, whereas the low inhibition group exhibited neither regional differentiation nor hemispheric effects. The cortical alpha activation pattern of intermediate inhibition may reflect a dynamic balance or flexible shift between top-down cognitive control and bottom-up associative processing that optimizes creative ideation. Together, these findings offer a new perspective on the complex relationship between cognitive inhibition and creativity. More importantly, they reveal the cognitive and neural mechanisms through which cognitive inhibition regulates creative thinking, thereby deepening our understanding of the cognitive architecture underlying creativity.
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      – SubjectFull: Concept Formation
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      – TitleFull: Beyond Extremes, Intermediate Cognitive Inhibition Facilitates Creative Thinking: Behavioral and Neural Evidence in Young Adults
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