Impacts of the Mood Fit in the Classroom on Depression and Creativity

The fit between a pupil and his or her classmates in the negative mood means that the mood is similarly high or low in the pupil and classmates. This fit is likely to impede depression (in terms of depressive symptoms) and sustain creativity in the pupil, according to ecological or person-environment fit theory. Such possibilities, nevertheless, are suspicious in light of some counterarguments and findings. To examine the possibilities, the present study employed survey data on 632 middle-school pupils in Guangzhou, China. Results about the effects of the fit on depression and creativity support the possibilities. Essentially, although the negative mood of the pupil and his or her classmates had adverse effects, the fit in the mood tended to mitigate the adversity. The results imply a greater need for preventing depression and raising creativity in the pupil with a lower fit to his or her classmates.