Study: Are adults more creative than children?

A study published in the journal PLOS One challenges the widespread belief that children possess greater creative capacity than adults. Researchers found that adults actually produce more novel, effective, and creative work compared to preschoolers. However, the younger group demonstrated significantly higher enjoyment, motivation, and lower fear of failure during the tasks. The research was conducted by a team from the Creative Cognition Lab at the University of Graz, led by Mathias Benedek, in collaboration with colleagues from institutions in Munich, Louvain, and New Haven. The investigation examined the creative behavior of two distinct groups: 92 preschool children and 70 adults. Participants were required to complete several specific assignments designed to test their imaginative abilities. First, they had three minutes to list alternative uses for a simple tin can. Next, they spent eight minutes drawing a fantasy creature. Finally, they used another eight minutes to draw freely on white paper using colored pencils, depicting whatever came to mind. After completing these activities, all participants reflected on their self-confidence, their anxiety regarding potential failure, and their overall pleasure derived from the exercises. Independent evaluators assessed the resulting drawings and ideas without knowing which age group produced them. Across all tasks, the judges rated the adult submissions as more innovative, efficient, and creative. Conversely, the subjective self-assessments favored the children. The preschoolers reported greater joy in the activities, higher levels of motivation, and less fear than the adult participants. The adults indicated measurable levels of performance anxiety and expressed significantly lower trust in their own capabilities. Notably, more than three-quarters of the adult participants incorrectly judged the children to be more creative than themselves. Mathias Benedek, who investigates neurocognitive interactions in the brain at the University of Graz, explained the discrepancy. He noted that adults care deeply about how others might judge their ideas. While this self-monitoring may lead to a realistic assessment of one's creativity, it also generates worry about evaluation. This concern can inhibit the free flow of ideas. Benedek expressed surprise at the amount of joy the children displayed, particularly when there was no clear goal. Adults, by contrast, preferred having a specific objective to aim for. Benedek initially wondered if adults simply generated more effective ideas while children produced more original ones. The data suggested otherwise. Adults created highly unusual fantasy creatures, whereas many children drew unicorn-like beings. Thus, adults produced both more effective and more original concepts. The researchers attribute the common perception that children are more creative to the enthusiasm and self-confidence the young participants display. They compare this dynamic to sports, where people often perceive those who exercise regularly as athletic, even if they do not win medals. The study’s data supported this view: participating children reported engaging in creative activities once per day, while adults placed their creative engagement at roughly once per week. Interestingly, the children did not hold biases against other age groups. When asked to assess creativity, the young participants viewed adults and other children as equally capable. The research team intends to continue investigating why adults generally rate themselves as less creative than children. The findings suggest that the perceived loss of creativity in adulthood is linked to psychological factors such as fear of judgment and reduced confidence, rather than an actual decline in cognitive ability. The study highlights the role of emotional states in shaping both the production and the perception of creative output. By removing the element of external judgment through blind review, the true quality of the work became apparent, contradicting long-held cultural assumptions. The results imply that encouraging a mindset focused on process rather than outcome could help adults reclaim some of the creative freedom observed in children. The collaborative nature of the study, involving multiple international universities, adds weight to the conclusions drawn from the comparative analysis of the two groups. The specific metrics used, including time limits and task types, provide a structured framework for understanding how different ages approach open-ended problems. The disparity between objective performance and subjective feeling remains a central focus for future inquiry into human development and artistic expression.