Creativity assessment in cognitive neuroscience

Investigations of the brain mechanisms underlying creative cognition requires researchers to adapt creativity assessments to meet the constraints imposed by cognitive neuroscience research - assessing well-defined cognitive processes, repeated over many trials in a neuroscientific lab environment. This chapter presents an overview of how creativity is assessed in neuroscience contexts based on a quantitative review of central task parameters including task type (e.g., divergent thinking, creative problem-solving), response modality (e.g., verbal, visual, etc.), number of tasks (i.e., trials), time duration, what kind of responses are collected (e.g., whether participants speak, write, draw, press buttons, etc.), and when these responses are collected (e.g., after or during the task). We further examine how assessment parameters vary with task type and neuroscience methods (e.g., fMRI, EEG). The review discloses a substantial heterogeneity of methodological approaches across studies, but also identifies some established common practices. Typical adaptations include the employment of shortened tasks, which allows the realization of more tasks per session and a focused investigation of time-critical cognitive processes. Studies also commonly assess the creative quality of responses, which makes it necessary to separate periods of creative thinking from response production. We discuss the pros and cons of the various approaches with respect to their effects on the psychometric quality of assessments, and derive some caveats and recommendations for future research.