# A Survey on Large Language Model Hallucination via a Creativity Perspective

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.06647 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.06647/

## Key facts

- Cited by 38 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 20 of its 53 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 2 Feb 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 20 of 20)

- [LLaMA: Open and Efficient Foundation Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2302.13971/) (2023)
- [TruthfulQA: Measuring How Models Mimic Human Falsehoods](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2109.07958/) (2021)
- [Survey of Hallucination in Natural Language Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2202.03629/) (2022)
- [A Survey on Hallucination in Large Language Models: Principles, Taxonomy, Challenges, and Open Questions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.05232/) (2023)
- [Encouraging Divergent Thinking in Large Language Models through Multi-Agent Debate](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.19118/) (2023)
- [Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.05782/) (2023)
- [ChatEval: Towards Better LLM-based Evaluators through Multi-Agent Debate](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.07201/) (2023)
- [Siren's Song in the AI Ocean: A Survey on Hallucination in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.01219/) (2023)
- [A Survey of Hallucination in Large Foundation Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.05922/) (2023)
- [HaluEval: A Large-Scale Hallucination Evaluation Benchmark for Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.11747/) (2023)
- [A Comprehensive Survey of Hallucination Mitigation Techniques in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.01313/) (2024)
- [Med-HALT: Medical Domain Hallucination Test for Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.15343/) (2023)
- [Neural Path Hunter: Reducing Hallucination in Dialogue Systems via Path Grounding](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2104.08455/) (2021)
- [Can Knowledge Graphs Reduce Hallucinations in LLMs? : A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.07914/) (2023)
- [Cognitive Mirage: A Review of Hallucinations in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.06794/) (2023)
- [Putting GPT-3's Creativity to the (Alternative Uses) Test](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2206.08932/) (2022)
- [Assessing and Understanding Creativity in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.12491/) (2024)
- [Creative Agents: Empowering Agents with Imagination for Creative Tasks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.02519/) (2023)
- [User-Controlled Knowledge Fusion in Large Language Models: Balancing Creativity and Hallucination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.16139/) (2023)
- [LightHouse: A Survey of AGI Hallucination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.06792/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 30 of 38)

- [A Survey on the Memory Mechanism of Large Language Model based Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.13501/) (2024)
- [Are Reasoning Models More Prone to Hallucination?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.23646/) (2025)
- [Large Language Models Assume People are More Rational than We Really are](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.17055/) (2024)
- [Large Language Models Hallucination: A Comprehensive Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.06265/) (2025)
- [Position: Multimodal Large Language Models Can Significantly Advance Scientific Reasoning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.02871/) (2025)
- [Lost in Transcription, Found in Distribution Shift: Demystifying Hallucination in Speech Foundation Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.12414/) (2025)
- [Interpreting and Mitigating Hallucination in MLLMs through Multi-agent Debate](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.20505/) (2024)
- [Real or Robotic? Assessing Whether LLMs Accurately Simulate Qualities of Human Responses in Dialogue](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.08330/) (2024)
- [Fakes of Varying Shades: How Warning Affects Human Perception and Engagement Regarding LLM Hallucinations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.03745/) (2024)
- [AutoTRIZ: Automating Engineering Innovation with TRIZ and Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.13002/) (2024)
- [CreativeBench: Benchmarking and Enhancing Machine Creativity via Self-Evolving Challenges](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.11863/) (2026)
- [DioR: Adaptive Cognitive Detection and Contextual Retrieval Optimization for Dynamic Retrieval-Augmented Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.10198/) (2025)
- [Loki's Dance of Illusions: A Comprehensive Survey of Hallucination in Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.02870/) (2025)
- [Preventing Rogue Agents Improves Multi-Agent Collaboration](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.05986/) (2025)
- [Shakespearean Sparks: The Dance of Hallucination and Creativity in LLMs' Decoding Layers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.02851/) (2025)
- [Cooking Up Creativity: Enhancing LLM Creativity through Structured Recombination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.20643/) (2025)
- [From Context to EDUs: Faithful and Structured Context Compression via Elementary Discourse Unit Decomposition](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.14244/) (2025)
- [LLM2TEA: An Agentic AI Designer for Discovery with Generative Evolutionary Multitasking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.14917/) (2024)
- [Can Hallucinations Help? Boosting LLMs for Drug Discovery](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.13824/) (2025)
- [TPU-Gen: LLM-Driven Custom Tensor Processing Unit Generator](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.05951/) (2025)
- [MultiHal: Multilingual Dataset for Knowledge-Graph Grounded Evaluation of LLM Hallucinations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.14101/) (2025)
- [Adversarial Activation Patching: A Framework for Detecting and Mitigating Emergent Deception in Safety-Aligned Transformers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.09406/) (2025)
- [Mitigating Hallucination in Large Language Models (LLMs): An Application-Oriented Survey on RAG, Reasoning, and Agentic Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.24476/) (2025)
- [Critical Confabulation: Can LLMs Hallucinate for Social Good?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.07722/) (2025)
- [Heaven-Sent or Hell-Bent? Benchmarking the Intelligence and Defectiveness of LLM Hallucinations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.21635/) (2025)
- [LLM4DESIGN: An Automated Multi-Modal System for Architectural and Environmental Design](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.12025/) (2024)
- [Library Hallucinations in LLM-Generated Code: A Risk Analysis Grounded in Developer Queries](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.22202/) (2025)
- [Harmless Yet Harmful: Neutral Prompting Attacks for Stealthy Hallucination Steering in Agent Skills](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.29354/) (2026)
- [FiSTECH: Financial Style Transfer to Enhance Creativity without Hallucinations in LLMs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.05365/) (2024)
- [MIH-TCCT: Mitigating Inconsistent Hallucinations in LLMs via Event-Driven Text-Code Cyclic Training](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.08904/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Hallucinations in large language models (LLMs) are always seen as limitations. However, could they also be a source of creativity? This survey explores this possibility, suggesting that hallucinations may contribute to LLM application by fostering creativity. This survey begins with a review of the taxonomy of hallucinations and their negative impact on LLM reliability in critical applications. Then, through historical examples and recent relevant theories, the survey explores the potential creative benefits of hallucinations in LLMs. To elucidate the value and evaluation criteria of this connection, we delve into the definitions and assessment methods of creativity. Following the framework of divergent and convergent thinking phases, the survey systematically reviews the literature on transforming and harnessing hallucinations for creativity in LLMs. Finally, the survey discusses future research directions, emphasizing the need to further explore and refine the application of hallucinations in creative processes within LLMs.