A review of EEG, ERP, and neuroimaging studies of creativity and insight.

Abstract

Creativity is a cornerstone of what makes us human, yet the neural mechanisms underlying creative thinking are poorly understood. A recent surge of interest into the neural underpinnings of creative behavior has produced a banquet of data that is tantalizing but, considered as a whole, deeply self-contradictory. We review the emerging literature and take stock of several long-standing theories and widely held beliefs about creativity. A total of 72 experiments, reported in 63 articles, make up the core of the review. They broadly fall into 3 categories: divergent thinking, artistic creativity, and insight. Electroencephalographic studies of divergent thinking yield highly variegated results. Neuroimaging studies of this paradigm also indicate no reliable changes above and beyond diffuse prefrontal activation. These findings call into question the usefulness of the divergent thinking construct in the search for the neural basis of creativity. A similarly inconclusive picture emerges for studies of artistic performance, except that this paradigm also often yields activation of motor and temporoparietal regions. Neuroelectric and imaging studies of insight are more consistent, reflecting changes in anterior cingulate cortex and prefrontal areas. Taken together, creative thinking does not appear to critically depend on any single mental process or brain region, and it is not especially associated with right brains, defocused attention, low arousal, or alpha synchronization, as sometimes hypothesized. To make creativity tractable in the brain, it must be further subdivided into different types that can be meaningfully associated with specific neurocognitive processes.

Brain activity and connectivity during poetry composition: Toward a multidimensional model of the creative process

“…Each of these cognitive functions must be engaged during this initial phase of the creative process. Indeed, a role for the MPFC during spontaneous creative activity has been confirmed by many neuroimaging studies using different paradigms and imaging modalities [Dietrich and Kanso, 2010]. …”

“…Although many regions have been implicated, the most frequent observations have emphasized the frontal lobe [Dietrich and Kanso, 2010]. Activation of the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) is perhaps the most consistent finding across studies [Dietrich and Kanso, 2010].…”

“…Although many regions have been implicated, the most frequent observations have emphasized the frontal lobe [Dietrich and Kanso, 2010]. Activation of the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) is perhaps the most consistent finding across studies [Dietrich and Kanso, 2010]. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) has also been implicated, albeit in a variety of ways that will be discussed below [Bengtsson et al, 2007; Berkowitz and Ansari, 2008].…”

Remote Associates Test and Alpha Brain Waves

“…Such a mechanism might also explain the finding of a positive association between alpha brain waves and verbal creativity (Fink, Grabner, Benedek, & Neubauer, 2006;Jausovec, 2000;Martindale & Hasenfus, 1978;Martindale & Hines, 1975). However, not all EEG studies find such an association (Danko, Shemyakina, Nagornova, & Starchenko, 2009;Molle, Marshall, Wolf, Fehm, & Born, 1999;Shemyakina & Danko, 2007) and the conditions under which it appears remain to be elucidated (Dietrich & Kanso, 2010).…”

New advances in the neural correlates of insight: A decade in review of the insightful brain

“…Previous studies on the laterality or hemispheric effect of creative thinking have demonstrated that the left hemisphere is generally associated with analytical thinking, and the right hemisphere is associated with creative thinking. Some studies on insight problem solving support a right hemispheric dominance of insight [52], but most studies exhibit the left hemispheric effect of insight [82]. Both hemispheres are involved in creative insight, and the interaction between the two hemispheres is critical.…”