Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions
Abstract Several studies have investigated the effect of induced mood state on conceptual breadth (breadth and flexibility of thought). Early studies concluded that inducing a positive mood state broadened cognition, while inducing a negative mood state narrowed cognition. However, recent reports ha...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SpringerOpen
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Cognitive Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00447-w |
| _version_ | 1811217777729470464 |
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| author | Andrew Chung Michael A. Busseri Karen M. Arnell |
| author_facet | Andrew Chung Michael A. Busseri Karen M. Arnell |
| author_sort | Andrew Chung |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Several studies have investigated the effect of induced mood state on conceptual breadth (breadth and flexibility of thought). Early studies concluded that inducing a positive mood state broadened cognition, while inducing a negative mood state narrowed cognition. However, recent reports have suggested that valence and arousal can each influence conceptual breadth. Individual differences in affective dispositions may bias perceptions, thoughts, and behaviors and, in turn, may be biased by them. Here, we examine whether individual differences in valence and arousal dimensions of self-reported, naturally occurring affect relate to conceptual breadth (using the Remote Associates Test, the Object Categorization Task, and the Alternative Uses Task), with no mood manipulations or cues. The three conceptual breadth tasks loaded onto a latent conceptual breadth factor that was predicted significantly by the interaction of valence and arousal. For participants low in arousal, greater positive affect was associated with greater conceptual breadth. For participants high in arousal, greater positive affect was associated with reduced conceptual breadth. In contrast to most existing theories of conceptual breadth that highlight the importance of valence or arousal alone, the present results suggest that the interaction between arousal and valence is key to predicting individual differences in conceptual breadth. We posit that positive mood states predict greater conceptual breadth in the presence of low versus high arousal due to a relaxation of cognitive control under low arousal. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T07:00:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1f7a2200049d46799e4f0eebe53a75d0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2365-7464 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T07:00:05Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | SpringerOpen |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cognitive Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-1f7a2200049d46799e4f0eebe53a75d02022-12-22T03:43:02ZengSpringerOpenCognitive Research2365-74642022-11-017111410.1186/s41235-022-00447-wIndividual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactionsAndrew Chung0Michael A. Busseri1Karen M. Arnell2Department of Psychology, Brock UniversityDepartment of Psychology, Brock UniversityDepartment of Psychology, Brock UniversityAbstract Several studies have investigated the effect of induced mood state on conceptual breadth (breadth and flexibility of thought). Early studies concluded that inducing a positive mood state broadened cognition, while inducing a negative mood state narrowed cognition. However, recent reports have suggested that valence and arousal can each influence conceptual breadth. Individual differences in affective dispositions may bias perceptions, thoughts, and behaviors and, in turn, may be biased by them. Here, we examine whether individual differences in valence and arousal dimensions of self-reported, naturally occurring affect relate to conceptual breadth (using the Remote Associates Test, the Object Categorization Task, and the Alternative Uses Task), with no mood manipulations or cues. The three conceptual breadth tasks loaded onto a latent conceptual breadth factor that was predicted significantly by the interaction of valence and arousal. For participants low in arousal, greater positive affect was associated with greater conceptual breadth. For participants high in arousal, greater positive affect was associated with reduced conceptual breadth. In contrast to most existing theories of conceptual breadth that highlight the importance of valence or arousal alone, the present results suggest that the interaction between arousal and valence is key to predicting individual differences in conceptual breadth. We posit that positive mood states predict greater conceptual breadth in the presence of low versus high arousal due to a relaxation of cognitive control under low arousal.https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00447-wAffectConceptual breadthIndividual differencesLatent variable modeling |
| spellingShingle | Andrew Chung Michael A. Busseri Karen M. Arnell Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions Cognitive Research Affect Conceptual breadth Individual differences Latent variable modeling |
| title | Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| title_full | Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| title_fullStr | Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| title_short | Individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth: evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| title_sort | individual differences in naturally occurring affect predict conceptual breadth evidence for the importance of arousal by valence interactions |
| topic | Affect Conceptual breadth Individual differences Latent variable modeling |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00447-w |
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