This study investigated the impact of mild shifts in affective tone (i.e., pleasant vs. unpleasant) and arousal (i.e., high vs. low) on three creative processes. Undergraduates read short stories designed to induce affective shifts and then were asked to generate solutions to a complex business problem. Shifts in affective tone and arousal interacted to influence idea generation and implementation planning, but not idea evaluation. The strongest creative performance was exhibited by participants who experienced a stable and pleasantly toned, low‐arousal (i.e., relaxed) state and by those who shifted to an unpleasantly toned, high‐arousal (i.e., angry) state. In contrast, those who shifted to an unpleasantly toned, low‐arousal (i.e., sad) state or a pleasantly toned, high‐arousal (i.e., happy) state tended to exhibit poorer creative performance. These results demonstrate the need to revisit the popular conception that organizations should promote intense levels of pleasant affect to enhance employee creativity.

中文翻译：

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轻微的情感转移和创造力：对想法产生，评估和实施计划的影响

这项研究调查了情绪调和（即愉悦与不愉快）和唤醒（即高与低）的轻度变化对三个创作过程的影响。大学生读了旨在引起情感转变的短篇小说，然后被要求为复杂的业务问题提供解决方案。情感语调和唤醒的变化会影响思想的产生和实施计划，但不会影响思想评估。参加者表现出最强的创造力，他们经历了稳定且令人愉悦的调子，低沉（即放松）状态，以及那些转移到令人讨厌的调子，高调（即生气）的状态。相反，那些转变为令人不愉快的，低调（即悲伤）状态或令人愉悦的，高调（即高兴）状态的人往往表现出较差的创造力。