The role of creative thinking in children's scientific reasoning

Abstract

Theories advocate that creative thinking could be strengthened within the science curriculum, yet empirical evidence supporting a connection between the two remains limited. This study is one of the first to examine the predictive value of creative thinking (divergent and convergent thinking) for scientific reasoning, while taking task specificity and academic achievement into account. A path analysis based on data of 225 fifth graders revealed that verbal and visual convergent thinking positively predicted the construction of research questions and evaluation of evidence, whereas visual divergent thinking negatively predicted the construction of research questions. Mathematical ability proved of no predictive value for any of the creative thinking and scientific reasoning measures, while reading comprehension positively predicted verbal convergent thinking, the construction of research questions and evidence evaluation. This study illustrates how convergent thinking could be of particular relevance for children's scientific reasoning, and can serve as a starting point for in-depth research examining the role of creative thinking within scientific reasoning.