Does Thinking About Einstein Make People Entity Theorists? Examining the Malleability of Creative Mindsets

People differ in how they define creativity. Some people see it as malleable and possible to be developed (so-called growth mindset). Others view creativity as a stable and largely unchangeable characteristic (fixed mindset). In this article, we explore whether and to what extent creative mindsets change when everyday (little-c) or eminent (Big-C) creativity categories are experimentally activated by having participants (N = 501) read short descriptions of everyday and eminent creativity. Consistent with our predictions, thinking about renowned creators (the Big-C condition) led participants to exhibit stronger fixed beliefs compared to when they read descriptions of less prominent, little-c creativity. A reversed pattern was observed in the case of growth mindsets. Specifically, growth mindsets increased when little-c creativity was activated but decreased in the Big-C condition. We discuss implications of our findings for theory, research, and practice.