The

Brain Creativity is a complex process that involves many parts of the brain:
 Prefrontal cortex

and Recent research links the prefrontal cortex to creativity.

 Ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC)

Creativit This part of the prefrontal cortex regulates emotions and self-reflection,
which can spur creativity.
 Right hemisphere

y The right hemisphere is associated with creativity, emotion, intuition,

and spatial ability.
 Corpus callosum
Creative people tend to have smaller connections between the two hemispheres of the brain,
called the corpus callosum.
Other parts of the brain that may be involved in creativity include:
 The left side of the brain, which is commonly associated with logic
 The non-conscious mind, which is thought to be located in the right hemisphere
Some psychological tricks that may help spark creativity include:
 Going for a walk
 Rewarding yourself
 Creating some psychological distance
 Surrounding yourself with inspiration
 Creating restrictions
 Daydreaming
 Re-conceptualizing the problem
 Getting emotional

neurotransmitters that are consistently shown to interplay with creative behavior

include:
 Serotonin
 Dopamine
 The neuropeptide oxytocin
Neurotransmitters play a role in creativity:

 Dopamine

Supports idea originality and is associated with categorical diversity of ideas

 Serotonin

Governs whether you are operating from a sense of calm and contentment or from a position of
anxiety and fear

 Oxytocin

Interplays with creative behavior

 Cortisol

The stress hormone cortisol interacts with oxytocin to impact creative thinking

Other neurotransmitters that interplay with creative behavior include:

 Dopamine

 Serotonin

 The neuropeptide oxytocin

Stress and poor sleep lower serotonin levels, which hamper creativity. Cardiovascular activity boosts
serotonin levels, which increases creativity
Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to change itself. It's relevant to creativity because it allows the
brain to form new synaptic connections and reorganize existing ones. This provides the foundation
for our brains to generate unique ideas, think flexibly, and engage in problem-solving.

Numerous studies have revealed that individuals with a propensity for creativity possess neural
networks that exhibit heightened flexibility and adaptability. This empowers them to approach
problems from diverse vantage points.

Creativity is a result of divergent thinking, also known as lateral thinking. In divergent thinking,
people come up with multiple, alternate, or creative solutions to the same problem.

Engaging in creative activities can further boost neuroplasticity. For instance, musicians show
enhanced connections in regions linked to auditory processing.

Individu
al
Openness to experience and extraversion are positive predictors of creativity. Openness to

Differen
experience is creativity and intrigue, and extraversion is sociability.

Creativity is the ability to produce original work, theories, techniques, or thoughts. Creative
individuals typically display originality, imagination, and expressiveness.

ces
The five primary personality traits are: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness,
Neuroticism.

The acronyms OCEAN or CANOE can be used to refer to these five traits. These five traits represent
broad domains of human behavior and account for differences in both personality and decision
making.

Creative geniuses may have many traits, including:

 Openness: Being open to one's inner life, complexity, and ambiguity

 Tolerance: Having an unusually high tolerance for disorder and disarray

 Independence: Being independent and unconventional

 Creativity: Being innovative, imaginative, trailblazing, groundbreaking, pioneering, or

visionary

 Energy: Being high-energy

 Passion: Being passionate and sensitive

 Playfulness: Being playful and curious

 Flexibility: Being flexible

Other traits of creative geniuses include:

  Being introspective

 Enjoying being alone

 Being motivated by the work itself

 Approaching problems from a number of angles

 Thinking of more than one answer

 Learning about a variety of different subjects

 Loving to read

 Having a preference for complexity and ambiguity

 Having the ability to extract order from chaos

 Daydreaming

Some examples of creative geniuses include:

 William Bradley: A chef who focuses on making great food

 Vincent Van Gogh: A tortured genius who suffered from severe mental illness

 Thomas Edison: An inventor who holds nearly 1,100 patents, including the incandescent light
bulb, phonograph, and tattoo guns

Cultural and gender influences can affect creativity:

 Culture

Cultures that are more masculine, such as the USA, can be detrimental to women's
creativity. Cultures that are gender-egalitarian or relations-focused, such as Nordic countries, can be
conducive to women's creativity.

 Gender

Creativity is more strongly associated with stereotypically masculine characteristics. Men's ideas are
more often deemed “ingenious” than women's, even when it's on the same topic.

 Gender role

Both men and women who reported highly masculine gender role self-attributions surpassed the
performance of undifferentiated participants and feminine females.

 Cultural norms

Cultural norms and cues can push people towards different pathways. For example, people from East
Asian cultures are, on average, less creative than people from Western cultures. However, more
recent studies have found that East Asians are more creative when usefulness is valued more than
novelty.