Does AI Help or Hurt Creativity?

If you’ve seen the headlines lately, you might think AI is bad for creativity.

One well-known study from MIT made the news by suggesting that people who rely on AI think less and produce weaker work. Around the same time, another academic study found that AI can actually help people be more creative when it’s used the right way.

So, which one is true?

I hate to tell you, but the answer is both. But the differences are not contradictory, they just highlight different aspects on how AI is used and that matters for anyone using it to think, create, or work whether that’s at work, at home, or just for fun.

In the MIT study, people were asked to complete a writing task under three different scenarios. Some were instructed to write fully on their own. Some were allowed to use traditional search tools to look things up while still doing the writing themselves. Others relied heavily on AI to generate most of the content.

If you read anything about this study, you probably saw coverage focused on the group that leaned heavily on AI. That group showed less mental effort, remembered less about what they wrote, and produced work that felt less original. That result is headline worthy, but it only tells part of the story.

What rarely gets mentioned is how the other groups performed. The people who wrote on their own showed the strongest mental engagement and the highest sense of ownership over their work. The group that used search tools fell somewhere in the middle. They still had to decide what to use, what to ignore, and how to connect ideas, which kept them mentally involved in the task.

So, while the study did show a drop in understanding, recall, and quality when AI replaced, rather than supported, the thinking process, it did not make a distinction between using AI as a partner. That is what the newer study went on to explore, because many users in real life tend to copy or closely follow AI output with little effort to question, revise, or personalize it.

The newer study took a different approach. Instead of treating AI use as one single behavior, it looked at how people actually use AI when they’re thinking, writing, and solving problems. Rather than focusing only on output quality, the researchers paid attention to what was happening during the thinking process. They looked at how AI affected mental effort, focus, and the ability to move between tasks without getting stuck. What they found was more nuanced, and the impact of AI on creativity depended on how it was used.

People who already had strong thinking habits benefited the most. These were individuals who planned their approach, paused to reflect, and adjusted when something wasn’t working. When they used AI, it reduced mental clutter and freed up attention for deeper thinking. Their work was rated as more creative and more useful.

However, others saw far less benefit. For instance, when people lacked good critical thinking habits, AI didn’t meaningfully improve their work and in some cases, it made little difference at all!

The key takeaway is that AI acted as an amplifier. It strengthened good thinking, but it didn’t replace it. When users stayed engaged and treated AI as a partner in the process, creativity improved. When they expected the tool to do the thinking for them, the gains disappeared.

If you simply read the headlines, you may think that these studies say opposite things. But reading closely, you see that the MIT study shows what happens when AI replaces thinking and the newer study shows what happens when AI supports thinking.

That is a big difference and sheds some light on what is really going on. AI isn’t a creativity machine, and it doesn’t automatically make ideas better. It’s an easy to get caught up in the speed and efficiency gained with AI tools such as ChatGPT. When used as a tool, AI helps your creative process and makes how you think matter more. But when it has full control with no checks thinking and creativity drops. It’s not just academics or at work where this side effect shows up anywhere AI is used. Even using it at home, or just experimenting for fun, the people who get the most value are the ones who stay involved and make their own decisions.

What this really comes down to is responsibility.

AI is powerful, but it isn’t neutral. It pushes thinking in the direction you aim it. Left on its own, it’ll just keep going straight. Used with intention, it can help explore ideas, test assumptions, and sharpen how you think.

That choice shows up everywhere, not just at work. The tool doesn’t decide how creative you are. You do.

AI doesn’t ruin creativity.
Not steering it does.

If you are feeling the weight of a long job search, know that your experience is valid. The research makes it clear that these reactions are common and understandable. Stress builds quickly when work is uncertain, and it can affect every part of daily life.

You do not have to manage this alone. Speaking with PA CareerLink^® staff can help you regain focus and reduce some of the pressure. It is a simple conversation that helps you understand your options and plan your next steps with more confidence.

Many people tell us they feel clearer and more prepared after reaching out. If you are unsure about what to do next or need support during your search, contact us. PA CareerLink^® is here to help, and all of our services are at no cost to you!

Thanks for reading The Career Line. We’ll see you in a few days for the Friday Halt.