The effects of self-uncertainty on benevolent and malevolent creativity

Background: This study investigated how self-uncertainty influences benevolent creativity (BC) and malevolent creativity (MC), and whether creative goal orientation (BC versus MC) moderates these effects. Methods: Two experiments were conducted. In Experiment 1, self-uncertainty was induced through mental simulation. In Experiment 2, self-uncertainty was induced via a personal writing task. In both experiments, participants completed tasks measuring BC and MC, and creative performance was assessed in terms of fluency, originality, and flexibility. Results : • Experiment 1: Self-uncertainty significantly increased MC fluency but not BC fluency, resulting in a significant interaction between self-uncertainty and creative goal orientation. Self-uncertainty also enhanced originality across both creativity tasks. BC generally exceeded MC in fluency and flexibility. Flexibility showed a marginally significant interaction. • Experiment 2: Self-uncertainty increased fluency in both BC and MC tasks, with no significant interaction. Conclusions: Self-uncertainty showed mixed effects on creativity across the two experiments, primarily enhancing fluency. The predicted moderation by creative goal orientation emerged only in Experiment 1. These findings highlight the importance of examining boundary conditions—such as the specific induction method—in the relationship between self-uncertainty and creative performance.