The effects of exercising self-control on creativity

•We manipulate exercising self-control and measure participants’ promotion focus and insight problem-solving ability.•We examine whether exercising self-control improves creativity and whether the promotion focus mediates the relationship between exercising self-control and creativity.•After exercising self-control, participants’ promotion focus and insight problem-solving performances are increased.•Exercising self-control increases creativity.•Promotion focus mediates the relationship between creativity and exercising self-control.

The purpose of this study is to examine whether exercising of self-control improves creativity. Previous studies have indicated that promotion focus increases creativity; therefore, in Experiment 1, it had to be verified that exercising self-control could improve individual's promotion focus. After confirming exercising self-control could improve promotion focus, it might indicate that exercising self-control could also improve creativity (Experiment 2 and 3 examine this hypothesis). The results of Experiment 1 showed that the participants’ promotion focus increased following exercising self-control. The participants’ insight problem-solving performances in Experiment 2 was improved following activities of exercising self-control. The results of Experiment 3 indicated that promotion focus mediates the relationship among exercising self-control, fluency and flexibility. However, the originality indicator did not demonstrate this mediating effect. In summary, the data indicated that exercising self-control could increase creativity, and promotion focus could mediate the relationship between creativity and exercising self-control.