Have you ever found yourself lost in the monotony of everyday life, performing a seemingly mundane task, when suddenly, out of the blue, EUREKA! This amazingly crazy idea just popped up out of nowhere. Science tells us that creativity fosters tasks that allow our minds to wander. A study in 2014 shows how 72% of people get their creatives in the shower.
Creativity is the tendency to generate ideas and concepts to solve problems, communicate with others, and entertain ourselves and other means through imagination. When we think about creativity, we think of the arts first: music, painting, acting, etc., as that’s where creativity is applied the most. But it’s often hard to define creativity, as this trait is so abstract and looks different for everyone. So how does creativity work, and what are its neurobiological factors that contribute?
The Function of Creativity in the Brain
As sozidonics, the science of creativity, is a relatively new field, the current understanding of how creativity works is evolving. However, we do know that three key networks play a crucial role in creative thinking:
The Executive Attention Network, or the Central Executive Network, generates and evaluates ideas, connects concepts, and organizes thoughts. It allows individuals to stay focused on the task and effectively manipulate information to generate creative solutions.
The Default Network, also known as the Imagination Network, is associated with cognitive processes that require internally directed or self-generated thought, such as mind wandering, future thinking, perspective-taking, and mental stimulation. This network is used to remember/recollect, think about the future, and generally imagine alternative perspectives and scenarios to the present. The network is crucial for creativity as it allows the brain to connect seemingly unrelated ideas, engage in divergent thinking, and explore different perspectives. It provides a platform for generating novel ideas and associations, often leading to creative breakthroughs.
The Salience Network monitors your external world and carefully decides how networks react to new information and stimuli. It helps recognize patterns, connect disparate information, and detect novel or unexpected stimuli. It allows individuals to shift their attention and focus to new and potentially relevant aspects, fostering creative thinking and idea generation.
Neurobiological Factors
Emotional motivation - Positive emotions associated with creative experiences can activate dopamine release, enhancing motivation and the drive to engage in creative activities.
Reward - The brain's reward system, primarily involving the dopaminergic pathways, drives creative motivation and reinforcement. The anticipation and experience of rewards can enhance creative performance and motivation to engage in creative activities.
Mood states - Different mood states are influenced by the serotonergic pathways and can have positive and negative effects, and even mild states of depression, that influence creative thinking. Some individuals may experience enhanced creativity during positive mood states, while others may exhibit increased creative output during periods of sadness or melancholy.
Regulatory focus - Dopaminergic activity may be associated with a promotion-focused orientation, encouraging risk-taking and seeking innovative solutions. On the other hand, noradrenergic activity may be linked to a prevention-focused orientation, promoting caution and attention to detail in creative endeavors.
Social interaction - Social interactions and collaborative environments can influence creativity. Brain systems involved in social cognition, empathy, and perspective-taking can impact the generation and evaluation of creative ideas in social contexts.
Reference List
Cloke, H. (2023). Wired for Innovation: Exploring The Science of Creativity. [online] Growth Engineering. Available at: https://www.growthengineering.co.uk/wired-for-innovation-exploring-the-science-of-creativity/#:~:text=Instead%2C%20creativity%20consists%20of%20many [Accessed 21 Mar. 2024].
Crawford, L. (2022). The Default Mode Network (DMN). [online] Omniscient Neurotechnology. Available at: https://www.o8t.com/blog/default-mode-network.
Jeff Bullas. (2021). The Neuroscience of Creativity - A Short Guide. [online] Available at: https://www.jeffbullas.com/neuroscience-of-creativity/.
Khalil, R., Godde, B. and Karim, A.A. (2019). The Link Between Creativity, Cognition, and Creative Drives and Underlying Neural Mechanisms. Frontiers in Neural Circuits, 13(18). doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/fncir.2019.00018.
Radhakrishnan, D. (2018). Creativity and our Brain. [online] Warwick Neuroeconomics Blog. Available at: https://warwickneuroeconomics.wordpress.com/2018/04/13/creativity-and-our-brain/ [Accessed 21 Mar. 2024].
Weir, K. (2022). The Science behind Creativity. [online] American Psychological Association. Available at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/04/cover-science-creativity.
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