From Adversity to Advantage: An Investigation on the Relationship Between Adverse and Benevolent Childhood Experiences, Resilience, and Creativity

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between childhood experiences (positive or negative) and creativity and examined if adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are moderated or mediated by resilience. Two creativity measures, The Inventory of Creative Activities and Achievements (ICAA) and two verbal Alternate Uses Test (AUT) items, were used. Hypotheses were tested by hierarchical multiple regression analysis, where the dependent variable was creativity, and the predictor variables were ACE, BCE, and resilience (Step 2), which were added into the regression model after the demographic variables of age and gender (Step 1). ACE X resilience interaction effect was tested in the next step to test the moderation effect (Step 3). A separate path model tested the mediating effect of resilience between ACE and creativity. Overall, the results showed that the model in Step 2 was significant, and both ACE and resilience were significantly and positively associated with creativity as measured by ICAA whereas none predicted AUT performance. While ACE was negatively correlated with resilience, BCE was positively correlated with resilience and did not predict creativity. There was no support for mediating or moderating effect of resilience. Findings are discussed in terms of theories of creativity and human development.

Full text

From Adversity to Advantage:
An Investigation on the Relationship Between
Adverse and Benevolent Childhood Experiences,
Resilience, and Creativity
Fatmanur Cifci1, Selcuk Acar1, & Jason Chiang1
1University of North Texas
APA Div 10: Society for Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts (SPACA) annual conference
March 14-16, 2024, Denton, TX.

Background
▪Creativity is influenced by experiences (Batcho et al., 2011; Damian & Simonton, 2015; Setiawan et al., 2017).
▪Positive link between creativity and well-being (Acar et al., 2021).
▪ Benevolent childhood experiences (BCE) in enhancing creativity.
▪Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) may foster creativity by:
o Disrupting equilibrium and allowing creative adjustment (Runco, 1999).

▪Unfavorable childhood events and post-traumatic growth (PTG) (Damian & Simonton, 2015; Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004).
▪Struggling to produce original products and creativity (Batcho et al., 2011; Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004).
▪Unexpected events may push people's limits out of "normality" (Damian & Simonton, 2015).
▪Adversity and openness to new ideas and experiences (McCrae, 1987).
▪Expanded openness and creative problem-solving through:
o"diversifying experiences” (Damian & Simonton, 2015).
▪Childhood trauma and unique experiences with:
oGreater cognitive freedom, problem-solving ability, and flexibility (Damian & Simonton, 2015).
Background

Literature
Review ▪Orphan effect (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996; Simonton, 1994)
oEarly parent loss,
oPremature adult responsibilities,
oExceeding expectations, and
oExceptional achievements.
❖Particularly prevalent among authors, 55%.
▪Asynchronicity (Acar, 2020)
oOrphan effect,
oCognitive development abnormalities,
oIllness,
oFamily issues,
oHomosexuality,
oEarly school struggles, and
oChildhood loneliness.

Literature
Review
▪Resiliency
o“The process of bending and rebounding to overcome adversity” (Hunter, 2001).
oA specific type of adaptation (Metzl & Morrell, 2008).
▪High-creativity often come from: (Damian & Simonton, 2015; Simonton, 1994; Berry, 1981; Berry, 1999; Eisenstadt, 1978; Goertzel et al., 1978; Roe, 1953).
oNon-traditional backgrounds
•e.g., cultural or religious minorities,
•morbid tendencies,
•early orphanhood, or
•financial difficulties
oHave unconventional education and training experiences
•e.g., study abroad,
•multiple mentors,
•eagerly reading, and
•various hobbies
▪Resilient people with difficult childhoods might be more creative.

Problem
Statement
Purpose
Resilience may operate
concurrently with ACE.
Moderator Effect
•Resilient people who have had ACE
might be more likely to be creative.
Mediator Effect
•ACE may foster resilience resulting
in higher creativity.
The purpose of the present
study is to examine:
Relationship between childhood
experiences and creativity
If ACE are moderated or mediated
by resilience.
Research on childhood adversity
and creativity is needed
(Forgeard, 2024).

Research
Questions
▪Do positive childhood experiences impact creativity?
▪Do negative childhood experiences impact creativity?
▪How does resilience moderate or mediate the relationship
between adverse childhood experiences and creativity?

Methods ▪352 college students (Mage = 21.2)
▪From two Southwestern universities in US.
▪Measurements
oBenevolent Childhood Experience measurement (BCE, α= .79),
oAdverse Childhood Experiences International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ, α= .80),
oBrief Resilience Scale (BRS, α= .82),
oThe Inventory of Creative Activities and Achievements (ICAA, α= 0.79), and
otwo verbal Alternate Uses Test (AUT) items.
▪Hypotheses were tested by hierarchical multiple regression analysis:
oDV was creativity, and IVs were ACE, BCE, and resilience (Step 2),
oAdded into the regression model after the demographic variables of age and gender (Step 1),
oACE X resilience was tested to test moderation effect (Step 3),
oTested mediating effect of resilience between ACE and creativity (Step 4).

Coefficients
a
Model
t pBSE β
1
(Constant)
80.387 10.914
7.366
<.001**
Year of Birth
.390 .244 .107
1.600
.111
Gender
-6.224 8.571 -.046 -.726 .468
University
4.239 2.594 .111
1.634
.103
Parent Education
Level
.045 .442 .006 .101 .920
2
(Constant)
47.473 13.757
3.451
<.001**
Year of Birth
.314 .236 .086
1.328
.185
Gender
-14.612 8.761 -.107
-1.668
.097
University
4.876 2.638 .128
1.848
.066
Parent Education
Level
.127 .431 .018 .294 .769
ACE
.352 .136 .178
2.585
.010*
Resilience
1.089 .292 .232
3.730
<.001**
BCE
.962 .771 .087
1.247
.214
3
(Constant)
55.687 26.243
2.122
.035*
Year of Birth
.312 .237 .086
1.319
.189
Gender
-14.646 8.777 -.107
-1.669
.096
University
4.897 2.643 .128
1.853
.065
Parent Education
Level
.136 .432 .020 .314 .754
ACE
.133 .609 .068 .219 .827
Resilience
.656 1.211 .140 .542 .588
BCE
.933 .776 .085
1.203
.230
ACE X
Resilience
.012 .032 .138 .368 .713
a. Dependent Variable: ICAA
Results
Both ACE and resilience were significantly and
positively associated with creativity (ICAA)

= .18, t= 2.585, p = .010, and

= .232, t = 3.730, p < .001, respectively
The model in Step 2 was significant
F(3, 251) = 6.745,
p< .001, R2= .07.
None of them predicted AUT performance.

Results
Correlations
ICAA
Birth
Year
Gender
University
Parent
Education
Level
ACE
Resilience
BCE
ACE X
Resilien
ce
ICAA
1.000
.067
-.032
.070 .012
.089
.222** .051
.224**
Year of
Birth
.067
1.000
.004
-.350**
-.149**
.117*
.054 -.055
.135*
Gender
-.032
.004
1.000
.118* .027
-.061
.191*
.298**
.085
University
.070
-.350**
.118*
1.000 .203** -
.331**
.080
.244**
-.215**
Parent
Education
Level
.012
-.149**
.027 .203** 1.000
-.161*
.001
.135*
-.137*
ACE
.089
.117*
-.061
-.331**
-.161*
1.000
-.109*
-.405**
.726**
Resilience
.222**
.054
.191*
.080 .001
-.109*
1.000
.169*
.585**
BCE
.051
-.055
.298**
.244** .135* -
.405**
.169*
1.000
-.196*
ACE X
Resilience
.224**
.135*
.085
-.215**
-.137*
.726**
.585**
-.196*
1.000
ACE was negatively correlated
with resilience (r = -109, p = .040).
BCE was positively correlated
with resilience (r = .169, p = .003)
and did not predict creativity.
There was no support for
mediating or moderating effect of
resilience.

Discussion
▪Creativity is a multifaceted construct.
▪We measured two different aspects of creativity:
oDivergent thinking
oCreative activity and accomplishment
▪Statistically significant association between both
resilience and ACE and creative activity and
accomplishment, but not with creative ideation.

Discussion
Lack of resources or unfavorable circumstances may influence exceptionally
creative people, (Benedek, 2024) it may not influence their creative ideation but rather
their creative achievements.
Creative conduct is not submission; rather, it entails taking actions that result in a
novel product or a resolution to a difficulty (Cabra & Uribe-Larach, 2013).
Creative behavior through practical problem-solving skills from adverse life experiences
Understanding early experiences and resilience may enhance creativity.
This study is limited by its correlational-retrospective design.
With a causal relationship, longitudinal research would expand our comprehension.

References
1. Damian, R. I., & Simonton, D. K. (2015). Psychopathology, adversity, and creativity: Diversifying experiences in the development of eminent African Americans. Journal of Pers onality and Social Psychology, 108(4), 623-636.
2. Setiawan, E., Juliantine, T., & Komarudin, K. (2017). Development creativity students through problem-based learning model in physical education in reviewed of adversity quotient. In 2nd International Conference on Sports Science,
Health and Physical E ducation (pp. 611-613).
3. Batcho, K. I., Nave, A. M., & DaRin, M. L. (2011). A retrospective survey of childhood experiences. Journal of Happiness Studies, 12(4), 531-545.
4. Acar, S., Tadik, H., Myers, D., Van der Sma n, C., & Uysal, R. (2021) . Creativity and well‐being: A meta‐analysis. The Journal of Cre ative Behavior, 55(3), 738-751.
5. Benjet, C., Bromet, E., Karam, E. G., Kessler, R. C., McLaughlin, K. A., Ruscio, A. M., ... Koenen, K. C. (2016). The epidemiology of traumatic event exposure worldwide: Results from the World Mental Health Survey Consortium.
Psychological Medicine, 46(2), 327-343.
6. Sledjeski, E. M., Speis man, B., & Dierker, L. C. (2008). Does number of lifetime traumas explain the relationship between PTSD and chronic medical conditions? Answers from the National Comorbidity Survey-Replication (NCS-R).
Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 31(4), 341-349.
7. Runco, M. A. (1999). Tension, adaptability, and cre ativity. In S. W. Russ (Ed.), Affect, creative experience, and psychological adju stment (pp. 165-194). Philadelphia, PA: Taylor & Fra ncis.
8. Orkibi, H. & Ram-Vlasov, N. (2019). Linking trauma to posttraumatic growth and mental health through emotional and cognitive creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 13(4), 416-430.
9. Tedeschi, R. G. & Calhoun, L. G. (2004). Posttraumatic growth: Conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1-18.
10. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1996). Creativity: Flow and the psychology of discovery and invention. New York, NY: Ha rper Collins Publishers.
11. Simonton, D. K. (1994). Greatness: Who makes history and why. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
12. Acar, S. (2020). Asynchronicity. In M. A. Runco & S. R. Pritzker (Eds.), Encyclopedia of creativity (3rd ed., pp. 83-89). Vol. 1. Elsevier, Academic Press.
13. Berry, C. (1981). The Nobel scientists and the origin of scientific achievement. British Journal of Sociology, 32(3), 381–391.
14. Berry, C. (1999). Religious traditions as contexts of historical creativity: Patterns of scientific and artistic achievement and their stability. Personality and Individual Dif ferences, 26(6), 1125-1135.
15. Eisenstadt, J. M. (1978). Parental loss and genius. American Psycho logist, 33(3), 211-223.
16. Goertzel, M. G., Goertzel, V., & Goertzel, T. G. (1978). 300 eminent personalities: A psychosocial analysis of the f amous. San Francisco. CA: Jossey-Bass.
17. Roe, A. (1953). The making of a scientist. New York, NY: Dodd, Mead.
18. Root-Bernstein, R., Allen, L., Beach, L. Bhadula, R., Fast, J., Hosey, C., ... Weinlander, S. (2008). Arts f oster scientific success: Avocations of Nobel, National Academy, Royal Society, and Sigma Xi members. Journal of Psychology of
Science and Technology, 1(2), 51-63.
19. Einat S. Metzl & Malissa A. Morrell (2008). The Role of Creativity in Models of Resilience: Theoretical Exploration and Practical Applications. Journal of Creativity in Mental Heal th, 3(3), 303-318.
20. Hunter, A. J. (2001). A cross-cultural comparison of res ilience in adolescents. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 16(3), 172-179.
21. McCrae, R. R. (1987). Creativity, divergent thinking, and openness to experience. Journal of Pers onality and Social Psychology, 52 (6), 1258-1265.
22. Forgeard, M. (2024). Creativity and resilience: Creativity from, or through adversity?. Creati vity Resea rch Journal, 1-8.
23. Cabra, J. F., & Uribe-Larach, D. (2013). Creative behavior. In E. G. Carayannis (Ed.), Encyclopedia of creativity, invention, innovation and entrepreneurship (pp. 266–271). Springer.
24. Benedek, M. (2024). On the relationship between creative potential and creative achievement: Challenges and future directions. Learning and Individual Differences, 110, 102424.