ArticlePloS one2020
Mind wandering in creative problem-solving: Relationships with divergent thinking and mental health.
Article in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The Relative Accuracy of Different Methods for Measuring Mind Wandering Subtypes: A Systematic Review.Brain and behavior · 2025Pooled it
- A meta-analytical review of the impact of mindfulness on creativity: Framing current lines of research and defining moderator variables.Psychonomic bulletin & review · 2023Pooled it
- The two correlations between Academic Stress and Subjective Academic Achievement: the mediating roles of Emotion Regulation and Cognitive Decline, and the moderating role of Mind Wandering.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Mind-wandering in China and the UK: evidence of cross-cultural consistency.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- A primer on meta-awareness of mind wandering in schizotypy and schizophrenia.Psychological research · 2025Review
- Mind wandering during creative incubation predicts increases in creative performance in a writing task.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The chain mediation effect of rumination and worry between the intentionality and content dimensions of mind wandering and internalizing symptoms of depression and anxiety.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Oscillations of the Wandering Mind: Neural Evidence for Distinct Exploration/Exploitation Strategies in Younger and Older Adults.Human brain mapping · 2025Article
- Color and brightness at work: Shedding some light on mind wandering.Brain and behavior · 2024Article
- Comparison of trait and state mind wandering among schizotypal, subclinically depressed, and control individuals.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- EEG complexity measures for detecting mind wandering during video-based learning.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Navigating the multiple dimensions of the creativity-mental disorder link: a Convergence Mental Health perspective.Discover mental health · 2023Review
- Mental Pain Correlates with Mind Wandering, Self-Reflection, and Insight in Individuals with Psychotic Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Study.Brain sciences · 2023Article
- Examining the effects of a modified SART when measuring mind-wandering.Brain and behavior · 2023Article
- Dimensions of inattention: Cognitive, behavioral, and affective consequences.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Where Is My Mind…? The Link between Mind Wandering and Prospective Memory.Brain sciences · 2022Article
- The relationship between schizotypal personality features and mind wandering among college students during COVID-19 pandemic: A moderator of depression.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
- How bad is the mere presence of a phone? A replication of Przybylski and Weinstein (2013) and an extension to creativity.PloS one · 2021Article
- The Relationship Between Creativity and Intrusive Rumination Among Chinese Teenagers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Emotional Resilience as a Moderator.Frontiers in psychology · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Previous research has shown that mind wandering has both positive and negative effects. Mind wandering may improve creative problem solving; however, it could also lead to negative moods and poor mental health. It has also been shown that some forms of mental illness are positively related to creativity. However, the three factors of mind wandering, divergent thinking, and mental health have not been examined simultaneously, so it is possible that these relationships are manifested by spurious correlations. Therefore, we examined the relations among the three factors while controlling for each of their confounding effects. We asked 865 participants (458 men, 390 women, 17 unknown; Mage = 18.99 years, SD = 1.16) to complete a questionnaire measuring mind wandering traits, divergent thinking, and mental health measures including depressive symptoms and schizotypal personality. Multiple regression analysis showed that people who reported more depressive symptoms, schizotypal personality, and divergent thinking, were more likely to engage in mind-wandering. Our results indicated that frequency of mind wandering was linked to a risk of poorer mental health as well as to higher divergent thinking ability. In future research, we will examine the features of mind wandering related to divergent thinking and mental health by considering the contents of wandering thoughts and whether they are ruminative or not. We also need to examine whether the same results will be found when studying professionals in creative occupations, and when using different scoring methods in divergent thinking tests.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.