Schizotypy and creativity as effects of reduced cognitive inhibition

The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that enhanced creativity in highly schizotypal individuals may be explicable in terms of reduced cognitive inhibition. A total of 72 participants completed the STA measure of schizotypy (Claridge and Broks, 1984), the instances and uses tests from the Wallach and Kogan (1965) divergent thinking battery and a negative priming task as a measure of cognitive inhibition. It was predicted that higher levels of schizotypy would be independently associated with higher creativity as reflected in greater divergent thinking, and with reduced cognitive inhibition. However, it was further hypothesised that the relationship between schizotypy and creativity would be partially mediated by the level of cognitive inhibition. A significant positive correlation was found between STA scores and the number of original (unique) responses generated for divergent thinking measures, but the previously reported association between reduced cognitive inhibition and schizotypy (e.g. Beech and Claridge, 1987) was not replicated. The contribution of schizotypy and cognitive mechanisms to creative thinking is discussed in terms of a broader theory which considers the interaction of these traits with other aspects of temperament.