Why Does Forgiving Boost Creativity? The Role of Cognitive Persistence

Abstract

This study elucidates the specific cognitive mechanism by which the act of forgiving enhances creativity. We use the dual pathway to creativity model to examine whether the act of forgiving increases creativity via cognitive persistence (generating detailed ideas within a small number of categories), but not via cognitive flexibility (generating multiple categories and switching ideas between categories). Two experiments conducted within separate Korean and US samples provided convergent evidence that cognitive persistence, not flexibility, mediates the forgiving-creativity link. Our study suggests that how cognitive resources are deployed serves as a driving mechanism for the creativity-related benefits of forgiving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Seoul Journal of Business is the property of Seoul National University, College of Business Administration and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)