The Science of Creativity & How to Enhance Creative Innovation

Creativity and Novelty in Art

• Creativity involves novel combinations of existing rule sets
• Reveals something fundamental and different about the world or brain

Examples of Creative Artistic Acts

Accurate Representation of a Face

• Faithfully represents what’s already there
• Not particularly creative

Escher Paintings

• Repeating patterns not typically seen in the natural world
• Reveals a fundamental feature about the visual system: repetitive patterns become noise, unusual patterns become signal
• Inverts the relationship between signal and noise
• Captures the attention and delight of many people

Banksy Art

• Combines two-​​dimensional art with a three-​​dimensional landscape
• Reveals fundamental concepts about how our brain works and encodes relationships between objects
• Examples:
  • Dog raising its leg next to a fire hydrant
  • Girl holding a bouquet of balloons on the West Wall in the Middle East
• Allows the concept or controversy to emerge or “pop out” at the viewer

Other Examples in the Visual Domain

• Rothko paintings
  • Show colors in a different way than typically seen
  • Provides information about how the brain encodes color
    Novel Hues and Music Perception

• Novel hues in art reveal how the brain processes and extracts color

• Music perception can reveal how the auditory system encodes information 
  • Excitement and novelty in music can be due to changes in accents, sentence construction, or other elements
  • Neural circuits change when experiencing novel combinations, releasing dopamine and other neuromodulators

Creativity and Neural Circuits

• Creativity involves novel combinations of elements that reveal something fundamental about the brain or the world
• Three major networks in the brain are responsible for creativity: 
  1. Executive Network
     • Governs thinking and behavior through deliberate actions
     • Involves the prefrontal cortex, responsible for suppressing action and eliminating choices
  2. Default Mode Network 
     • Engaged when focusing on internal thoughts and feelings
     • Involves the medial prefrontal cortex and other brain regions
     • Important for spontaneous imagination and accessing memories of previous experiences
  3. Salience Network
     • Involves the insula, anterior cingulate cortex, and amygdala
     • Pays attention to what is most interesting or relevant in the world or within oneself

The Creative Process

• Creativity is a process, better understood as a verb rather than a noun
• Three steps in the creative process: 
  1. Coming up with a creative idea
  2. Testing the creative idea
  3. Implementing the creative idea
• Creativity can involve rearranging existing elements into novel combinations that are useful or reveal something fundamental about the world or ourselves 
  • Examples include entertaining or thrilling experiences, as well as practical inventions like technology or vehicles Notes:

Creativity and the Brain

• Creativity involves coming up with novel, useful ideas that change the way we interact with the world
• Brain areas and networks involved in creativity are important to understand

Divergent Thinking and Convergent Thinking

• Two elements of creativity: divergent thinking and convergent thinking
• Divergent thinking: generating multiple ideas from a single concept 
  • Example: coming up with various scenarios based on a picture of someone running
  • Involves mental flexibility and suppressing context
  • Requires exploring ideas already existing in one’s memory
• Convergent thinking: implementing specific combinations of ideas and testing their relevance or impact 
  • Involves executive function and reducing options
  • Helps arrive at the most interesting and creative answer

Importance of Foraging for Information

• To be creative, one must have a foundation of structured information
• Cannot break rules without understanding them first
• Extreme virtuosity in a given area often comes from years of developing basic building blocks

Applying Divergent and Convergent Thinking to Creativity

• Divergent thinking initiates the creative process 
  • Starts with a single concept and radiates out in an unconstrained manner
• Convergent thinking tests the combinations of ideas to see if they are interesting, relevant, or impactful 
  • Aims to discover fundamental rules or patterns that emerge from the creative process
    Understanding Creativity and Divergent vs. Convergent Thinking

• Creativity is not just novel combinations, but novel combinations that reveal something fundamental

• Creativity involves two types of thinking: divergent thinking and convergent thinking

Divergent Thinking

• Involves generating a range of ideas from a single concept
• Requires just enough focus to remember the initial object or thing
• Explores ideas that are close and far from the initial concept

Convergent Thinking

• Involves combining different elements to make sense in the real world
• Requires more focus and persistence than divergent thinking
• Feels like solving a puzzle and relies on distinct brain circuits from divergent thinking

Dopamine and Its Role in Creativity

• Dopamine is a molecule associated with motivation, desire, drive, and pleasure
• Resides within four different networks in the brain
• Responsible for both divergent thinking and convergent thinking through separate pathways

Dopamine in Divergent Thinking

• Dopamine in the Nigrostriatal pathway is involved in generating bodily movements and eye movements
• Engaged when thinking about movement or stories involving movement
• Activated during divergent thinking, linking concepts in various ways

Dopamine in Convergent Thinking

• Dopamine in a separate brain network underlies convergent thinking 
• Understanding how these separate pathways work and how to engage them differentially can help improve creativity

Tools for Engaging Creativity

1. Understand divergent thinking and how to explore a range of ideas
2. Understand convergent thinking and how to combine elements to make sense in the real world
3. Understand that dopamine is responsible for both divergent and convergent thinking through separate pathways
4. Learn how to engage these pathways differentially to discover and test creative ideas

Additional Notes

• The concept of “dopamine hits” is often misunderstood and associated with compulsive behaviors rather than active seeking of positive anticipation
• Dopamine is involved in neural circuits that motivate us to take action in the world

• The four major circuits in the brain that utilize dopamine are involved in movement, eye movements, and thinking about movement
  Dopamine Circuits and Creativity

• Two dopamine circuits associated with creativity: 
  • Divergent thinking: Nigrostriatal circuit 
    • Involved in physical movement and generating ideas
  • Convergent thinking: Mesocortical pathway 
    • Involved in motivation, emotion, focus, and persistence
    • Connects the lateral ventral tegmental area to the prefrontal cortex
• Dopamine creates different responses in the brain and body when active in these circuits
• Naturally occurring variations in genes can influence whether people are better at divergent or convergent thinking 
  • Nature and nurture both play a role in developing these skills

Tools to Enhance Divergent and Convergent Thinking

• Divergent thinking requires access to memory banks and suppression of autobiographical narratives 
  • Open monitoring meditation can help enhance divergent thinking 
    • Reduces the involvement of brain regions related to memory function
    • Allows for exploration of new possibilities without being constrained by past experiences
• Convergent thinking can be enhanced through focused attention meditation 
  • Helps improve focus and persistence needed for convergent thinking

Open Monitoring Meditation and Focused Attention Meditation

• Both types of meditation can be performed in similar physical positions (sitting, lying down, standing)
• Open monitoring meditation can be done with eyes open or closed 
  • Involves suppressing memory and forgetting prior understanding of possibilities
  • Allows for the creation of new narratives and exploration of new ideas
• Focused attention meditation helps improve focus and persistence needed for convergent thinking 
  • Involves concentrating on a specific object, thought, or sensation
  • Helps train the brain to maintain focus and work towards a specific goal or answer

Importance of Engaging Both Divergent and Convergent Thinking

• People may naturally be better at one type of thinking over the other due to genetics or early life experiences
• Engaging in both types of thinking is crucial for the creative process
• For individuals aged between 5 and 25, it is important to practice both divergent and convergent thinking to enhance their abilities

• For those aged 25 and older, it is still possible to improve these skills through practice and the use of tools like open monitoring and focused attention meditation
  Open Monitoring Meditation and Creativity

• Open monitoring meditation involves sitting or lying down, closing your eyes, and allowing thoughts, emotions, and ideas to surface without judgment

• Can be done for 10–30 minutes or longer
• Improves divergent thinking capability through increased dopamine activity in the brain
• Regular practice leads to neuroplasticity, making it easier to engage in divergent thinking

Focused Attention Meditation and Creativity

• Focused attention meditation involves sitting or lying down, closing your eyes, and focusing on a specific element (e.g., breath, body part, sound, or visual point)
• Improves convergent thinking, focus, and memory
• Regular practice leads to better ability to analyze choices and persist in choice selection

Dual Meditation for Creativity

• Combining open monitoring meditation (5–10 minutes) with focused attention meditation (5–10 minutes) can improve both divergent and convergent thinking
• Regular practice can lead to significant improvements in the creative process

Mood, Dopamine, and Creativity

• Mood and creativity are linked through dopamine levels in the nigrostriatal pathway
• Elevated dopamine levels lead to increased blinking frequency, which is a measure of dopamine activity in this pathway
• Being in a good mood facilitates divergent thinking due to higher dopamine levels

Research on Blinking, Mood, and Creativity

• Studies by Chair Mahini and Hommel in the Netherlands have explored the relationship between blinking, mood, and creativity
• Findings show that people with higher blinking frequency (indicating higher dopamine levels) can engage in divergent thinking more easily when in a good mood

Enhancing Creativity through Meditation and Mood

• Practicing open monitoring meditation and focused attention meditation regularly can improve both divergent and convergent thinking
• Being aware of one’s mood and its impact on dopamine levels can help determine which type of meditation or tool to use for enhancing creativity

• Engaging in activities that elevate mood and dopamine levels can lead to better creative outcomes
  Dopamine and Divergent Thinking

• Divergent thinking: ability to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions

• Dopamine levels affect divergent thinking 
  • High dopamine levels can lead to poor divergent thinking (e.g., manic bipolar disorder)
  • Elevated dopamine levels, but not too high, favor divergent thinking
• Chermahini and Homo’s research on mood and divergent thinking 
  • Low mood: less likely to engage in divergent thinking, but susceptible to mood elevation through positive stimuli
  • Good mood: further dopamine elevation can be detrimental to divergent thinking

Mood Calibration and Creativity

• Assess your mood: low, medium, or high
• If in low or medium mood, engage in mood-​​elevating activities before attempting divergent thinking
• If in a good mood, avoid additional stimuli that increase dopamine levels
• Caffeine: increases dopamine receptors, enhances focus, and is conducive to convergent thinking 
  • Avoid caffeine before divergent thinking, but consider it before convergent thinking

Pharmacology and Dopamine

• No supplement or drug can selectively elevate dopamine in only one of the four circuits (nigrostriatal, mesocortical, mesolimbic, tuberoinfundibular)
• L‑tyrosine: amino acid precursor to dopamine, can enhance dopamine levels for work or energy 
  • Cannot selectively target specific dopamine pathways

• Illicit drugs also cannot selectively target specific dopamine pathways
  Effects of Dopamine on Focus and Movement

• Cocaine and methamphetamine increase dopamine non-​​selectively across different pathways

• Drugs that block dopamine can suppress psychotic symptoms but may cause movement issues (tardive dyskinesia)
• Parkinson’s patients have selective deficits of dopamine in the substantia nigra, leading to movement issues

Increasing Dopamine with Prescription Drugs and Supplements

• Ritalin, Adderall, Modafinil, and Armodafinil increase dopamine and focus 
  • Can be habit-​​forming and addictive
  • Should only be taken under the supervision of a skilled psychiatrist
• L‑tyrosine can increase dopamine more evenly across the board 
  • Dosages of 500–1000mg
  • Milder effect than prescription drugs
• Caffeine can increase dopamine receptor efficacy and density 
  • 1–3mg per kg of body weight per day
• Phenylethylamine can also elevate dopamine 
  • 600mg has a brief effect lasting 30–45 minutes

Foods High in L‑tyrosine

• Aged Parmesan cheese
• Other foods can be found online

Behavioral Tool to Increase Dopamine: Yoga Nidra/​​NSDR

• Study: Increased dopamine tone during meditation-​​induced change of consciousness 
  • First in vivo demonstration of an association between endogenous neurotransmitter release and conscious experience
  • Performed in Denmark
• Yoga Nidra/​​NSDR involves deep relaxation while remaining awake and mostly motionless 
  • Long exhale breathing, attention to the surface of the body
• Study found a 65% increase in dopamine release and increased theta activity during this practice 
  • Specifically in the nigrostriatal pathway, associated with divergent thinking
• Reduction in bodily movement was essential for this effect 
  • Participants felt very still and relaxed after the practice

Takeaways

• Dopamine plays a significant role in focus, movement, and divergent thinking
• Prescription drugs, supplements, and certain foods can increase dopamine levels

• Engaging in Yoga Nidra/​​NSDR can selectively increase dopamine in the nigrostriatal pathway, promoting divergent thinking and creativity
  Dopamine Elevation and Divergent Thinking through NSDR

• NSDR (Non-​​Sleep Deep Rest) or Yoga Nidra-​​like practice can elevate dopamine levels 
  • Dopamine elevation prepares the brain for divergent thinking
  • Increases mental imagery and access to a “library” of possible solutions
• Practice involves lying motionless with eyes closed for 10–60 minutes 
  • Focus on relaxation, long exhale breathing, and body scans
  • Aim to stay in a shallow plane of consciousness, not deep sleep
• Recommendation: practice at least once per week for 20–30 minutes 
  • Divergent thinking should occur in the hour or hours following the practice

Serotonin and Creativity

• Serotonin underlies brain activity responsible for both divergent and convergent thinking 
  • 5‑HT2A receptor activation can favor both types of thinking
• Microdosing psilocybin can enhance activation of serotonergic pathways 
  • Psilocybin is still illegal in most areas, but clinical trials are ongoing for various mental health treatments
  • Microdosing does not induce hallucination or massive mood shifts

Behavioral Tools vs. Pharmacology

• Behavioral tools like NSDR should come first 
  • Safer, easier to adjust, and can provide more specificity than pharmacology
  • Pharmacology can cause off-​​target effects and may not be legal or safe
• For those interested in pharmacology for creativity, stay tuned for data on psilocybin microdosing 
  • Study: “Exploring the Effect of Microdosing Psychedelics on Creativity in an Open Label Natural Setting” (2018)
  • Examined effects of psychedelic truffles on creativity-​​related problem-​​solving tasks
    Microdosing Psilocybin and Creativity
• Enhances divergent and convergent thinking 
  • Due to increased 5‑HT2A receptor activity
  • Receptors present on neural circuits underlying divergent and convergent thinking
• Not a plug for microdosing, but a response to questions about pharmacologic agents to increase creativity

Alcohol and Creativity

• No evidence that alcohol increases creativity
• Low doses can enhance divergent thinking by reducing activation of the prefrontal cortex 
  • Suppresses autobiographical scripting (self-​​awareness, narratives about ourselves)
  • Not a plug for alcohol, but explains why some people use low doses for creative process

Cannabis and Creativity

• High THC cannabis can lead to enhanced divergent thinking 
  • Often too enhanced, making it difficult to implement ideas into a coherent framework
  • Ideas may make sense while under the influence, but not afterward or may be forgotten
• Refer to the episode on cannabis for more information

ADHD and Creativity

• People with ADHD can focus if interested in the subject
• Tend to be effective at divergent thinking, but less effective at convergent thinking 
  • Can have creative ideas, but implementation may be challenging
  • Requires additional steps and protocols to enhance convergent thinking
• Check out the episode on ADHD for more information

Physical Movement and Divergent Thinking

• Small but exciting literature on the relationship between movement and divergent thinking 
  • Niagara Striatal pathway involved in both movement and divergent thinking
• Studies show people can engage in divergent thinking more effectively while pacing or walking 
  • Allows for the intersection of different ideas that would normally be constrained
• Tool: Walk or engage in physical activity while not focusing on anything specific 
  • As ideas surface, record them via voice dictation or typing on a phone
  • Avoid distractions like social media, phone calls, or text messages

Pseudorandom Brain Circuitry

• Some brain circuits have dedicated point-​​to-​​point wiring (e.g., breathing, heartbeat, specific movements)
• Other circuits have extra wiring, allowing for pseudorandom connections and creative thinking 
  • Maintained into adulthood, these fine wires are not major highways between brain areas
    Enhancing Creativity through Movement and Narrative Theory
• Movement can activate pseudorandom neural pathways, facilitating divergent thinking 
  • Activities like walking, running, cycling, swimming, hiking, and pacing can help access new ideas
  • Requires some degree of skill or mastery in the domain of interest
• Narrative theory offers an alternative approach to enhancing creativity 
  • Based on Aristotle’s work in 335 BCE, further developed by Guilford in the 1950s
  • Used in various contexts, including companies, groups, and individuals
• Three elements of narrative theory: 
  1. World building: Create a different world structure for the creative idea 
     • Sets constraints and possibilities, similar to childhood imagination
  2. Perspective shifting: Take on the motivation of someone else, rather than just their viewpoint 
     • Captures a set of neural circuits related to motivational states
     • Constrains the number of possible actions and outcomes in a logical way
  3. Action generating: Force collaboration between individuals with different motivations 
     • Creates “creative collisions” where something new emerges from the interaction
     • Can be antagonistic, synergistic, or take on various forms depending on the motivations involved

• Narrative theory can help individuals think outside their usual framework and access creativity in a childlike way
  New Concepts in Creativity

• Creativity is bounded, not infinite 
  • Even children’s creativity has limits
  • Unbounded creativity would result in pure chaos
• Three elements of creativity: 
  1. World building: creating an alternate universe for the story or creation
  2. Perspective shifting: taking the perspective of others, understanding their motivations and goals
  3. Action generating: thinking about how different individuals with different motivations would engage in actions, interactions, and dialogue
• These elements can be reawakened in adults for meaningful creative works 
  • Can lead to new product design, workplace interactions, etc.
• Future episode on narrative and storytelling 
  • Role in accessing neuroplasticity and enhancing memory

Understanding Creativity

• Fascinating aspect of human brain function 
  • No known upper limits
  • Key requirement: utility (not necessarily practical, but revealing something fundamental about the world or ourselves)
• Neural circuits underlying creativity: 
  • Divergent thinking
  • Convergent thinking
  • Narrative building
• Tools and steps to access divergent and convergent thinking: 
  • Behavioral tools
  • Pharmacology

• Narrative building as a way to reaccess childhood creativity