Pathways to scientific creativity: A meta-analytic structural equation modelling of relationships among scientific knowledge, divergent thinking, convergent thinking, critical thinking and scientific creativity

Understanding pathways to scientific creativity is critically important for assessing and cultivating it. This study employs meta-analytic structural equation modelling (MASEM) to synthesize empirical findings from existing literature and to test the validity of a structural model of scientific creativity. Specifically, we examined the relationships among divergent thinking, convergent thinking, critical thinking, scientific knowledge, and scientific creativity. The results reveal three key insights. First, divergent thinking had only a limited direct association on scientific creativity, whereas convergent thinking showed no significant association with scientific creativity. Second, critical thinking may function as a cognitive regulator that balances the openness of idea generation (divergent thinking) with idea evaluation (convergent thinking), while scientific knowledge serves as a key mediating resource. Third, scientific knowledge plays a central and foundational role in shaping scientific creativity.