Greater psychological distance, better creative-idea selection: the mediating role of construal level

Background: Creativity research has often focused on idea generation rather than the crucial process of idea selection, which is essential for identifying practical and innovative solutions. Previous studies suggest that individuals frequently struggle with effectively selecting creative ideas, often performing no better than random chance. Psychological distance, defined as the subjective perception of how close or distant an event is, can facilitate decision-making and creative cognition, offering a potential mechanism for enhancing creative-idea selection. Methods: The research consists of four studies examining the effects of psychological distance on creative-idea selection and the mediating role of construal level in this relationship. Study 1a investigates the correlation between perceived psychological distance and idea-selection performance. Study 1b manipulates psychological distance to assess its effects on idea selection. Study 2 introduces the construal level as a mediating variable and tests a mediation model. Finally, Study 3 manipulates the construal level directly to confirm its causal relationship with creative-idea selection. Results: Our results indicate that greater psychological distance is associated with higher originality in the selected ideas and an increased selection of optimal ideas. However, psychological distance does not significantly impact the usefulness of the ideas. Study 1a found a positive correlation between psychological distance and the originality of selected ideas. Study 1b further confirmed that manipulating psychological distance enhances the originality of selected ideas and increases the rate of optimal idea selection. Study 2 demonstrated that construal level mediates the relationship between psychological distance and idea selection, particularly influencing originality. Study 3 confirmed the causal role of construal level, showing that a higher-level construal mindset leads to the selection of more original ideas. Conclusions: This research underscores the importance of psychological distance and construal level in creative-idea selection. Increasing psychological distance can enhance individuals’ ability to select more creative ideas by fostering higher-level construals. These findings offer practical implications for improving the creative selection processes in various contexts, suggesting that subtle cues (e.g., emphasizing future scenarios or abstract thinking) can help individuals make more effective creative choices.