Effects of longing and problem type on brainstorming creativity

Human longs for many things (individual, situation, time, etc.) in their life. One of the things that people yearn for is the longing for school and homesickness. Although there are studies in the literature on the relationship of homesickness with psychological health and well-being, its effect on creativity is not yet known. In the pilot study, the effect of homesickness (manipulated homesickness and control condition) on creativity was examined together with the problem type. A total of 119 university students participating in the first study were randomly assigned to four conditions: homesickness condition/relational problem type, homesickness condition/mechanical problem type, control condition/relational problem type, and control condition/mechanical problem type. After homesickness manipulation, the participants were brainstormed on the type of problem they were assigned (relational or mechanical). The two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the participants in the relational problem type generated a higher number of flexible ideas than those in the mechanical one. Also, the interaction effect between homesickness and problem type indicated that participants in homesickness conditions generated more flexible ideas than control ones in the relational problem type. In the second study, the effect of school-craving on creativity during the pandemic was examined. In this study, a total of 99 university students were assigned to four conditions: school-craving condition/relational problem type, school-craving condition/mechanical problem type, control condition/relational problem type, and control condition/mechanical problem type. After school- craving manipulation, the participants were brainstormed by assigning them to different problem types (relationship and mechanics) as in the first study. The two- way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that school-craving and problem type had an interaction effect on the number of original ideas and deep ideas. Missing school increases creativity in relational issues. These findings are explained within the framework of approaches to creativity.