Psychometric properties of the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory in an Argentine university population
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2026.22684Abstract
Creative self-efficacy is a fundamental construct in educational psychology, as it is linked to creativity, academic engagement, and problem-solving skills. Despite its relevance, it remains understudied in Spanish-speaking populations, as validated Spanish-language multidimensional instruments for measuring creative self-efficacy remain scarce. The present study addresses this gap by examining the psychometric properties of the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory in a sample of Argentine university students (n (number) = 416; age range: 18–67 years). Participants completed five instruments: 1) the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory; 2) the creative self-efficacy scale; 3) the emotion/motivation-related divergent and convergent thinking styles scale; 4) the creative actions scale; and 5) the creative personality scale. Confirmatory factor analysis validated the hypothesized seven-factor structure of the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory, demonstrating acceptable model fit indices (CFI (comparative fit index) = .912, TLI (Tucker–Lewis index) = .89, RMSEA (root mean square error of approximation) = .070, SRMR (standardized root mean square residual) = .058). Reliability analyses revealed strong internal consistency for the total Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory (ω (McDonald’s omega) = .912), and its subscales. Convergent validity was supported by significant positive correlations between the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory and related creativity measures. Differences across sex groups emerged, with males scoring higher in science and technology creative actions and females scoring higher in scenic arts and arts and crafts. These results indicate that the Spanish creative self-efficacy inventory is a reliable and valid tool for assessing creative self-efficacy in Argentine university students, contributing to the ongoing cross-cultural research on creativity assessment and the broader field of educational psychology.
Keywords:
cognitive style, creative achievements, creative self-efficacy, personality, psychometric properties, sex differencesHow to Cite
Share
License
Copyright (c) 2026 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Abbott, D. H. (2010). Constructing a creative self-efficacy inventory: A mixed methods inquiry [PhD/Doctoral Thesis, University of Nebraska – Lincoln], United States.
Abulela, M. A. A. (2024). Development and initial validation of a creative self-efficacy scale for undergraduates: Categorical confirmatory factor analysis and multidimensional item response theory. Frontiers in Education, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1306532
Alhadihaq, M. Y., Zakiah, S., Sudjatmoko, A., Winarno, A., & Hermana, D. (2024). How creative self efficacy foster entrepreneurial intention through creative process engagement in entrepreneurial higher education ecosystem. Cogent Economics and Finance, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23322039.2024.2370910
Alotaibi, K. N. (2016). Psychometric properties of creative self-efficacy inventory among distinguished students in Saudi Arabian Universities. Psychological Reports, 118(3), 902–917. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033294116646021
American Psychological Association. (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. https://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.html
Anderson, R. C. (2024). Creative development as an agentic process: Five distinct trajectories of divergent thinking originality across early adolescence. Learning and Individual Differences, 112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2024.102448
Aranguren, M., & Irrazábal, N. (2012). Diseño de una escala para la evaluación del comportamiento creativo en diferentes dominios [A scale for the evaluation of creativity behavior in different domains: development and design]. Ciencias Psicológicas, 6(1), 29–41. https://doi.org/10.22235/cp.v6i1.60
Aranguren, M., Oviedo, A., & Irrazábal, N. (2011). Estudio de las propiedades psicométricas de la escala de autoeficacia creativa en población Argentina [Psychometric properties of the creative self-efficacy scale in argentinian sample]. Revista de Psicología, 7(14). https://doi.org/10.22235/cp.v6i1.60
Atabek, O. (2020). Adaptation of creative self-efficacy scale into Turkish language. World Journal on Educational Technology: Current Issues, 12(2), 84–97. https://doi.org/10.18844/wjet.v12i2.4639
Baer, J., & Kaufman, J. C. (2008). Gender differences in creativity. Journal of Creative Behavior, 42(2), 75–105. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2162-6057.2008.tb01289.x
Bandura, A. (2009). Exercise of personal and collective efficacy in changing societies. In A. Bandura (Ed.), Self-Efficacy in changing societies (pp. 1–45). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511527692.003
Batey, M., & Furnham, A. (2008). The relationship between measures of creativity and schizotypy. Personality and Individual Differences, 45(8), 816–821. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2008.08.014
Batey, M., Furnham, A., & Safiullina, X. (2010). Intelligence, general knowledge and personality as predictors of creativity. Learning and Individual Differences, 20(5), 532–535. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2010.04.008
Beghetto, R. A. (2006). Creative self-efficacy: Correlates in middle and secondary students. Creativity Research Journal, 18(4), 447–457. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1804_4
Beghetto, R. A., Kaufman, J. C., & Baxter, J. (2011). Answering the unexpected questions: Exploring the relationship between students’ creative self-efficacy and teacher ratings of creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 5(4), 342–349. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022834
Brockhus, S., Kolk, van der T. E. C., Koeman, B., & Badke-Schaub, P. G. (2014, 19–22 May). The influence of creative self-efficacy on creative performance. In D. Marjanović, M. Štorga, N. Pavković, & N. Bojčetić (Eds.), DS 77. Proceedings of the Design 2014: 13th International Design Conference (pp. 437–444), Dubrovnik, Croatia/Cavtat, Croatia. University of Zagreb/The Design Society.
Carmeli, A., & Schaubroeck, J. (2007). The influence of leaders’ and other referents’ normative expectations on individual involvement in creative work. The Leadership Quarterly, 18(1), 35–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2006.11.001
Carson, Sh. H., Peterson, J. B., & Higgins, D. M. (2005). Reliability, validity, and factor structure of the creative achievement questionnaire. Creativity Research Journal, 17(1), 37–50. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1701_4
Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Reichenbacher, L. (2008). Effects of personality and threat of evaluation on divergent and convergent thinking. Journal of Research in Personality, 42(4), 1095–1101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2007.12.007
Choi, H., Kim, H., & Kim, N. (2024). Enhancing creativity through a problem-based design thinking project in higher education. Cogent Education, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2024.2378272
Choi, J. N. (2004). Individual and contextual predictors of creative performance: The mediating role of psychological processes. Creativity Research Journal, 16(2–3), 187–199. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1602&3_4
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1999). Implications of a systems perspective for the study of creativity. In R. J. Sternberg (Ed.), Handbook of creativity (pp. 313–336). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511807916.018
Daher, W., Gierdien, F., & Anabousy, A. (2021). Self-efficacy in creativity and curiosity as predicting creative emotions. Journal of Research and Advances in Mathematics Education, 6(2), 86–99. https://doi.org/10.23917/jramathedu.v6i2.12667
Dollinger, S. J., Clancy Dollinger, S. M., & Centeno, L. (2005). Identity and creativity. Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research, 5(4), 315–339. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532706xid0504_2
Du, K., Wang, Y., Ma, X., Luo, Zh., Wang, L., & Shi, B. (2020). Achievement goals and creativity: The mediating role of creative self-efficacy. Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental Educational Psychology, 40(10), 1249–1269. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2020.1806210
Elisondo, R. C. (2021). Creative actions scale: A Spanish scale of creativity in different domains. Journal of Creative Behavior, 55(1), 215–227. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.447
Elisondo, R. C., Soroa, G., & Flores, B. (2022). Leisure activities, creative actions and emotional creativity. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2022.101060
Fang, Y.-H., & Chang, Y.-Ch. (2023). Effect of creative self-efficacy on creativity among college students: The moderating effect of college innovation climate. International Journal of Higher Education, 12(5), 128–139. https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v12n5p128
Farmer, S. M., & Tierney, P. (2017). Considering creative self-efficacy: Its current state and ideas for future inquiry. In M. Karwowski & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.). Explorations in creativity research. The creative self: Effect of beliefs, self-efficacy, mindset, and identity (pp. 23–47). J. C. Kaufman (Series Ed.). Elsevier/Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809790-8.00002-9
Flores Puga, B. (2020). Exploring the impact of design thinking on higher education students’ creative self-efficacy [PhD/Doctoral Thesis, Mondragon University], Spain. https://ekoizpen-zientifikoa.ehu.eus/documentos/5faddfb52999522f1f15f038?lang=en
Freiberg Hoffmann, A., Vigh, C., & Fernández-Liporace, M. (2019). Creative personality scale: Its adaptation for college students from Argentina. Anales de Psicología, 35(2), 290–299. https://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.35.2.346131
Gough, H. G. (1979). A creative personality scale for the adjective check list. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(8), 1398–1405. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.37.8.1398
Guilford, J. P. (1967). The nature of human intelligence. McGraw-Hill Book Company.
Guo, Y., Lin, Sh., Williams, Z. J., Zeng, Y., & Cole Clark, L. Q. (2023). Evaluative skill in the creative process: A cross-cultural study. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2023.101240
Haase, J., Hoff, E. V., Hanel, P. H. P., & Innes-Ker, Å. (2018). A meta-analysis of the relation between creative self-efficacy and different creativity measurements. Creativity Research Journal, 30(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2018.1411436
Hass, R. W., Katz-Buonincontro, J., & Reiter-Palmon, R. (2019). The creative self and creative thinking: An exploration of predictive effects using Bayes factor analyses. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 13(4), 375–387. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000169
He, W. (2022). Creative self-efficacy as a predictor of the use of creative cognition. Global Journal of Health Science, 14(5), 10–16. https://doi.org/10.5539/gjhs.v14n5p10
He, W., & Chiang, T. (2024). From growth and fixed creative mindsets to creative thinking: An investigation of the mediating role of creativity motivation. Frontiers in Psychology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1353271
He, W., & Wong, W. (2021). Gender differences in creative self-efficacy: Findings of mean and variability analyses. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2021.100955
Hill, A., Tan, A.-G., & Kikuchi, A. (2008). International high school students’ perceived creativity self-efficacy. Korean Journal of Thinking and Problem Solving, 18(1), 105–115.
Hung, S.-P. (2018). Validating the creative self-efficacy student scale with a Taiwanese sample: An item response theory-based investigation. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 27, 190–203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2018.02.006
Hyeon Paek, S., & Runco, M. A. (2017). Dealing with the criterion problem by measuring the quality and quantity of creative activity and accomplishment. Creativity Research Journal, 29(2), 167–173. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2017.1304078
Jaussi, K. S., Randel, A. E., & Dionne, Sh. D. (2007). I am, I think I can, and I do: The role of personal identity, self-efficacy, and cross-application of experiences in creativity at work. Creativity Research Journal, 19(2–3), 247–258. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400410701397339
Karwowski, M. (2012). Did curiosity kill the cat? Relationship between trait curiosity, creative self-efficacy and creative personal identity. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 8(4), 547–558. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v8i4.513
Karwowski, M. (2011). It doesn’t hurt to ask… But sometimes it hurts to believe: Polish students’ creative self-efficacy and its predictors. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 5(2), 154–164. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021427
Karwowski, M., Gralewski, J., & Szumski, G. (2015). Teachers’ effect on students’ creative self-beliefs is moderated by students’ gender. Learning and Individual Differences, 44, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2015.10.001
Karwowski, M., & Kaufman, J. C. (2017). The nuances and complexities of who we are when we create: An introduction to creativity and the self. In M. Karwowski & J. C. Kaufman (Eds.), Explorations in creativity research. The creative self: Effect of beliefs, self-efficacy, mindset, and identity (xvii–xxiii). J. C. Kaufman (Series Ed.). Elsevier/Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809790-8.00027-3
Karwowski, M., & Lebuda, I. (2016). The Big Five, the Huge Two, and creative self-beliefs: A meta-analysis. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 10(2), 214–232. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000035
Karwowski, M., Lebuda, I., Wisniewska, E., & Gralewski, J. (2013). Big Five personality traits as the predictors of creative self‐efficacy and creative personal identity: Does gender matter? Journal of Creative Behavior, 47(3), 215–232. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.32
Karwowski, M., Lebuda, I., & Wiśniewska, E. (2018). Measuring creative self-efficacy and creative personal identity. The International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 28(1), 45–57.
Kenett, Y. N., & Ackerman, R. (2023). Creative metacognition: A much needed bridge between meta-reasoning and creativity. Physics of Life Reviews, 47, 162–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plrev.2023.10.006
Kerr, B. (Ed.). (2009). Encyclopedia of giftedness, creativity, and talent (Vol. 1). SAGE. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412971959
Lamb, K. N., Boedeker, P., & Kettler, T. (2025). Measuring creative self-efficacy: Instrument development and validation. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2024.101738
Lebuda, I., Zielińska, A., & Karwowski, M. (2021). On surface and core predictors of real-life creativity. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2021.100973
Leibovich de Figueroa, N. B., & Schufer de Paikin, M. L. (1989). Evaluación Computarizada de la Prueba ACL de H. Gough [Computerized evaluation of the H. Gough ACL test]. Tekné.
McCrae, R. R. (1987). Creativity, divergent thinking, and openness to experience. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(6), 1258–1265. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.52.6.1258
Michaeli Manee, F., & Abkhiz, Sh. (2023). Psychometric properties of Abbott’s creative self-efficacy inventory for Iranian adolescents. Psychological Achievements, 30, 37–50.
Miroshnik, K. G., Shcherbakova, O. V., & Kaufman, J. C. (2022). Kaufman domains of creativity scale: Relationship to occupation and measurement invariance across gender. Creativity Research Journal, 34(2), 159–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2021.1953823
Podsakoff, Ph. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J.-Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.5.879
Pretz, J. E., & Kaufman, J. C. (2017). Do traditional admissions criteria reflect applicant creativity? Journal of Creative Behavior, 51(3), 240–251. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.120
Pretz, J. E., & McCollum, V. A. (2014). Self-perceptions of creativity do not always reflect actual creative performance. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8(2), 227–236. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035597
Puente-Diaz, R., & Cavazos Arroyo, J. (2016). An exploration of some antecedents and consequences of creative self-efficacy: The role of achievement goals, enjoyment and divergent thinking. Creativity: Theories – Research – Applications, 3(1), 19–33. https://doi.org/10.1515/ctra-2016-0002
Sánchez-Ruiz, M. J., Hernández-Torrano, D., Pérez-González, J. C., Batey, M., & Petrides, K. V. (2011). The relationship between trait emotional intelligence and creativity across subject domains. Motivation and Emotion, 35, 461–473. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-011-9227-8
Silvia, P. J., Nusbaum, E. C., Berg, Ch., Martin, Ch., & O’Connor, A. (2009). Openness to experience, plasticity, and creativity: Exploring lower-order, high-order, and interactive effects. Journal of Research in Personality, 43(6), 1087–1090. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2009.04.015
Soroa, G., Balluerka, N., Hommel, B., & Aritzeta, A. (2015). Assessing interactions between cognition, emotion, and motivation in creativity: The construction and validation of EDICOS. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 17, 45–58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2015.05.002
Suherman, S., & Vidákovich, T. (2024). Role of creative self-efficacy and perceived creativity as predictors of mathematical creative thinking: Mediating role of computational thinking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2024.101591
Tan, A.-G., Ho, V., Ho, E., & Ow, S. (2008). High school students’ perceived creativity self-efficacy and emotions in a service learning context. The International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 18(2), 115–126.
Tan, A.-G., Ho, V., & Yong, L.-Ch. (2007). Singapore high school students’ creativity efficacy. New Horizons in Education, 55(3), 96–106.
Tan, A.-G., Li, J., & Rotgans, J. (2011). Creativity self-efficacy scale as a predictor for classroom behavior in a Chinese student context. The Open Education Journal, 4(S1), 90–94. https://doi.org/10.2174/1874920801104010090
Taylor, Ch. L., Said-Metwaly, S., Camarda, A., & Barbot, B. (2024). Gender differences and variability in creative ability: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the greater male variability hypothesis in creativity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 126(6), 1161–1179. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000484
Tierney, P., & Farmer, S. M. (2011). Creative self-efficacy development and creative achievement over time. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(2), 277–293. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020952
Tierney, P., & Farmer, S. M. (2002). Creative self-efficacy: Its potential antecedents and relationship to creative performance. Academy of Management Journal, 45(6), 1137–1148. https://doi.org/10.2307/3069429
Ünal, A., & Taşar, M. F. (2021). A systematic review of creative self-efficacy literature in education. EURASIA: Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 17(12). https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11404
Vally, Z., Salloum, L., AlQedra, D., Shazly, el S., Albloshi, M., Alsheraifi, S., & Alkaabi, A. (2019). Examining the effects of creativity training on creative production, creative self-efficacy, and neuro-executive functioning. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 31, 70–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2018.11.003
Wang, X.-M., Huang, X.-T., Han, Y.-H., & Hu, Q.-N. (2024). Promoting students’ creative self-efficacy, critical thinking and learning performance: An online interactive peer assessment approach guided by constructivist theory in maker activities. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2024.101548
Wolfradt, U., & Pretz, J. E. (2001). Individual differences in creativity: Personality, story writing, and hobbies. European Journal of Personality, 15(4), 297–310. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.409
Yew Lin Tan, R., & Tan, A.-G. (2015). Children’s affectivity and efficacies. In A.-G. Tan & Ch. Perleth (Eds.), Creativity in the Twenty First Century. Creativity, culture, and development (pp. 117–132). A.-G. Tan (Series Ed.). Springer Science+Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-636-2_8
View article in other formats
Published
Issue
Section
Copyright
Copyright (c) 2026 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.