Positive Emotions’ Effect on
Buffering and Creativity:
An Experimental Design
Katrina Ong
Dean Craig Smith & Professor Leslie Kirby’s Lab
Positive Emotions
• Negative emotions specific action tendency vs. positive
emotions multiple action tendencies (Fredrickson 1998;
Fredrickson, 2001)
• Positive emotions (and specifically optimistic disposition)
are correlated with increased health outcomes specifically
with cardiac health (Agarwal, et al., 1995; Kubzansky et
al., 2001; Scheier et al., 1999)
• Positive emotions can buffer against depression after
stressful events (Tugade, et al., 2004; Seligman, et al.,
1999)
Buffering & Creativity
The Undoing Hypothesis (Fredrickson,et al.,2000) as part of the Broaden
and Build Theory (Fredrickson, 2001)
Buffering: When a positive emotion is first induced it may be able to
prevent the effects of a negative emotion
Previous Attempts by the Lab
& Pilots
• Bauman’s (2011) study
• Mood Induction (Differential Positive Emotions)
• Stressor (Singing at the Commons)
• Pilot 1 (Behavioral Mood Induction)
• Pilot 2 (Writing Prompts)
• Pilot 3 (J-task as a Stressor)
Methods
• Main Study: 83 Vanderbilt student participants (74% female)
• Instruments: REDcap, DEAL, LIWC, Physio
• Conditions: Positive or Neutral for Mood Induction based
on random assignment
1) Baseline DEAL and Physio
2) Mood Induction Writing Prompt
3) Manipulation Check DEAL
4) Stressor J-Word Task (number of words, number of word roots,
and avg. word length collected)
5) DEAL + Other questionnaires
Hypotheses
1) When using baseline and post-mood induction scores
as covariates, the participants in the positive
condition would emotionally respond significantly
less to the stressor task.
2) Participants in the positive condition would show
increased creativity in the stressor task as measured
by word count, number of word roots, and average
word length.
Results
Positive Affect vs. Time of Appraisal
100
90
80
Positive Affect
70
60
56.1611
50
48.6459
46.0264
Positive
42.6408
40
42.826
37.6684
30
20
10
0
Baseline
Post-Induction
Post-Stressor
Time of Appraisal
Neutral
What would
buffering look like?
Results
35
Negative Affect v. Time of
Appraisal
Negative Affect v. Time of
Appraisal
35
30
26.5354
25
20
18.5462
15
12.6329
11.7602
12.0619
Negative Affect (0-100)
29.4126
30
25
20
15
10
5
10
0
Baseline
5
Post-Induction
Time of Appraisal
Positive
0
Baseline
Post-Induction
Time of Appraisal
Positive
Post-Stressor
Neutral
Post-Stressor
Neutral
Results Behavioral Outcomes
Number of Words Listed v. Condition
20
19
18
Number of J-words listed
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
Positive
Neutral
Condition
• Participants in the positive condition (M=17.68) listed
significantly more words than those in the neutral
condition (M=14.98), F(1,77)=4.497, p<.05.
Conclusions & Discussion
• Found evidence to support Broaden and Build
theory that positive emotions lead to increased
creativity and cognitive flexibility
• Use more sensitive measures to creativity in the future
• No evidence of buffering even with a strong positive
mood induction and mild stressor
• Buffering may not be related to the emotional state of
happiness and optimism but rather trait values like an
optimistic disposition and/or emotion focused coping
THANK YOU
Thesis Committee: Craig Smith, Meg Saylor, and Rachel Aaron
Craig Smith
Kellie Kuzmuk Sloane Sparks
Leslie Kirby
Alena Perszyck
Jennifer Yih
Bonnie
Williamson
Nora Kline