Relationship between executive functions and positive and negative mood and creativity of students

The aim of the current research was to investigate the relationship between three specific executive abilities–updating, shifting, and inhibition– and mood and creativity.
In the descriptive (correlation) study, 120 volunteer student (51 male,70 female) answered the positive and negative affect schedule (PANAS) and Torrance test of creative thinking figural form B (TTCT), then three different types of executive functions were assessed by n-back test, Wisconsin card sorting test and simple stroop test in psychometrics laboratory.
The result of the research indicated that there is a positive meaningful relationship between positive mood and creativity. Moreover, in positive mood updating predicted creativity and inhibition predicted originality but not fluency or elaboration of ideas and shifting unable to predicted component of creativity.
The findings provide direct support for the executive involvement in creative thought and the role of positive mood that may facilitate updating and inhibition to new idea generation. We conclude that reative thought does not solely depend on spontaneous thought processes, but strongly relies on controlled top-down activity.