Researchers at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) and Goldsmiths University of London have discovered a method that boosts creativity through electrical brain stimulation.
Humans are wired to learn through experiences. Our problem-solving techniques usually require us to apply rules that we have previously learned to new situations. Problems that are more difficult often require a creative method to overcome the circumstance. Some people can successfully maneuver difficult problems they encounter while others experience much difficulty. The researchers argue that learned rules have the possibility of acting as constraints that need to be removed to think about possible solutions. This is an automatic process that has a pernicious influence on our everyday thinking. More often than not, when we encounter a difficult problem, we find ourselves in a temporary mental paralysis. This mental paralysis leads to people getting stuck and incapable of thinking of a new solution. This standstill is often fixed when we suppress previously learned constraints, which can then allow for the development of a solution.
To attain a higher level of creativity, researchers temporarily suppressed the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). The DLPFC is one of the main contributors to cognitive control. It is specifically involved in emotional biases, decision-making, and other processes. Researchers used transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to affect the DLPFC. tDCS is a process that “involved passing a weak constant electrical current through saline-soaked electrodes positioned over the scalp to modulate the excitability of the DLPFC.” The electrical current could either temporarily activate or suppress the DLPFC.
TUN had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Caroline Di Bernardi Luft from QMUL’s School of Biological and Chemical Sciences about this research.
“We demonstrated in this study that creativity is not a unitary cognitive skills.,” said Luft. “That means that it is not possible to improve creativity ‘completely’. In our study, we improved a specific dimension of creativity which is the ‘thinking-out-of-the-box’ component. People were more able to override assumptions after tDCS to suppress the excitability of the prefrontal cortex was delivered.”
The researchers used sixty participants who were tested on their creative problem-solving ability before and after getting their DLPFC suppressed, activated, or unstimulated. The participants solved “matchstick problems” that varied in difficulty and required a suppression of mathematical techniques previously learned.
Thinking out of the box, as we found, requires less cognitive control.
“We showed that creativity is a cognitive skill which can be broken down into smaller processes which can be specifically targeted. Under this assumption, we will not try to find a ‘brain area’ responsible for creativity, but pursue a broader understanding of the brain circuits underlying creativity. Therefore, I believe that to improve creativity one has to be aware of these various processes which happen as people engage in creative activities. These processes cannot be improved all at the same time, as many circuits are in competition, therefore, it is unlikely that we are able to completely improve creativity.”
Those whose DLPFC was suppressed were found more likely to solve hard problems than the participants whose DLPFC was activated or not stimulated. This supported the hypothesis that when the DLPFC is suppressed, people can think more creatively and abstractly. In addition, researchers observed that the participants got worse at solving problems with a higher working memory demand if many items were needed to be held in the mind at once.
While brain stimulation was proved to increase creativity temporarily, it should not be done at home. “It might be physically safe because the current is low, but the effects might actually be the opposite of what the person using it is expecting as the stimulation can benefit certain cognitive functions and impair others at the same time,” Luft explained. She gave three main reasons why this treatment should not be done at home: stimulation interacting with ongoing brain activity can affect the brain; the stimulation is not concentrated in one area as the shock can affect other areas of the brain; and the improvement of some cognitive functions may negatively affect others. “If you’re stuck or feeling that you have hit a creativity roadblock, you better give it some time, relax and stop overthinking it,” said Luft.
While this research does not prove that stimulating our brain will be beneficial every time we reach a mental roadblock, it does bring science closer to finding new ways to help people become more creative thinkers.
