Social support and creativity among art students in China: Creative self-efficacy as a mediator

This study investigated whether social support from friends and family can predict creativity through the mediating role of creative self-efficacy (CSE) among art undergraduate students in China. Guided by social cognitive theory, we tested the proposed framework using survey responses from 358 participants. Results showed that family support directly predicted creativity, while friend support did not. CSE served as a positive mediator of both paths, fully mediating the link between friend support and creativity, and partially mediating that between family support and creativity. These findings highlight the central role of family in shaping students’ psychological resources and creativity within the Chinese sociocultural context and suggest the importance of addressing both internal beliefs and culturally rooted external support.