Semantic associations and executive control predict Novelty and appropriateness of idea generation respectively and mediated by separate brain connectivity

Abstract Novelty and appropriateness are two fundamental components of creativity. However, the way in which novelty and appropriateness are separated at behavioral and neural levels remains poorly understood. In the present study we aimed to distinguish behavioral and neural bases of novelty and appropriateness of creative idea generation. In alignment with two established theories of creative thinking, which respectively emphasize semantic association and executive control, behavioral results (n = 1,519) indicated that novelty was supported by associative ability, while appropriateness was supported by executive function. Next, employing a connectome predictive modeling (CPM) approach in resting-state fMRI data (n = 1,455), we defined two functional network-based models—dominated by interactions within default network (DMN) and by interactions within limbic network (LIM)—that respectively predicted novelty and appropriateness (i.e., cross-brain prediction). Furthermore, the generalizability and specificity of the two functional connectivity patterns were verified in additional resting-state fMRI and task-fMRI. Finally, the two functional connectivity patterns respectively mediated the relationship between semantic association/executive control and Novelty/appropriateness. These findings provide global and predictive distinctions between novelty and appropriateness in creative idea generation.