Domain-Specific Creativity in Relation to the Level of Empathy and Systemizing

This study aimed to explore self-reported domain-specific creativity in relation to the level of empathy, systemizing, and the Big Five personality dimensions. The research sample consisted of 1112 college students to whom the Kaufman Domains of Creativity Scale (K-DOCS), the Creative Achievement Questionnaire (CAQ), Baron-Cohen's empathy and systemizing quotients (EQ and SQ), and NEO-FFI were administered. The results suggest that the systemizing quotient (SQ) significantly correlated positively with the K-DOCS Mechanical/Science, and Scholarly scales, as well as with the CAQ Invention and Scientific Discovery scales. The empathy quotient (EQ) significantly correlated in a positive direction with the K-DOCS Self/Everyday creativity. In spite of the fact that the EQ and SQ overlap to a considerable extent with the five general personality dimensions and are closely linked to gender, the results confirm their incremental validity beyond the framework of these variables. The EQ and SQ explain the considerable amount of variability, particularly in the case of the scales connected with scientific and technical creativity: the SQ is a relevant predictor of the K-DOCS Mechanical/Science scale and the CAQ Invention and Scientific Discovery scale. By contrast, the EQ represents a significant predictor of Self/Everyday creativity.