What makes a creative day? A diary study on the interplay between affect, job stressors, and job control

Binnewies Carmen, Wörnlein Sarah C.

Abstract

Applying a within-person perspective to research on creativity at work, this diary study examined daily positive and negative affect (NA) in the morning as well as daily job stressors (time pressure and situational constraints) as predictors of daily creativity. In addition, the general level of job control was investigated as a cross-level moderator in these relationships. Hypotheses were tested in a sample of 90 interior architects (N¼326 days) who completed a general survey and two daily surveys over the course of one work week. Hierarchical linear modeling showed that a higher level of positive affect (PA) in the morning as well as an intermediate level of daily time pressure was related to higher daily creativity. Job control moderated relations between daily NA, daily situational constraints and daily time pressure (curvilinear effect) with daily creativity. Our results stress the importance of daily affect and daily job stressors as well as the moderating role of job control for daily creativity at work.