Implicit beliefs, cognitive flexibility and creativity : a correlational study comparing Normal-Technical and express stream students

Abstract

Cognitive flexibility has a large influence on adolescents’ lives as an element of executive functioning. It has been found to be influenced by beliefs, such as self-efficacy (Demirtaş, 2020). In the present study, implicit beliefs were examined to determine their associations with two subsets of cognitive flexibility – reactive and spontaneous flexibility – in two differently-achieving streams, the Normal-Technical (NT) stream and the Express stream. Creativity was also investigated in relation to cognitive flexibility. 71 Secondary Two students – 40 NT stream students and 31 Express stream students - participated in a battery of tests to measure their implicit theories of intelligence, of non-academic abilities and of creativity, as well as reactive flexibility, spontaneous flexibility and creativity. Findings indicated some associations between the implicit theories and cognitive flexibility for the NT sample but not Express sample, supporting the abolishment of the streaming system. Results on the relationship between creativity and cognitive flexibility were inconclusive, prompting more research in this area using a wider variety of measures to analyse the different aspects of cognitive flexibility and creativity in students of different profiles.