Spontaneous analogising caused by text stimuli in design thinking: differences between higher- and lower-creativity...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Design Research
• Neuroscience of Creativity

Background:

• Understanding cognitive processes in creative practices is crucial for design research.
• Electroencephalography (EEG) is a valuable tool for investigating brain activity during cognitive tasks.
• Differentiating neural correlates of creativity can inform design education and practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate brain activations in visual designers using electroencephalography (EEG) during design thinking.
• To explore how different types of word stimuli affect brain activity in high-creativity (HC) and low-creativity (LC) designers.
• To identify neural differences associated with creative potential in visual design.

Main Methods:

• Thirty visual designers were categorized into HC and LC groups based on creativity assessment.
• EEG was employed to record brain activity while participants responded to word stimuli (poems, similar/opposing adjectives).
• Analysis focused on brain region activations and spectral power differences between groups and conditions.

Main Results:

• Overall brain activation increased in frontal and right temporal regions, decreasing in the right prefrontal cortex.
• A notable negative association was observed between right temporal and middle frontal regions.
• Significant differences in brain activation patterns were found between HC and LC designers across various word stimuli, particularly in frontal, temporal, and frontoparietal regions.

Conclusions:

• Creative potential in visual designers is associated with distinct patterns of brain activation, especially in frontal and temporal areas.
• The type of cognitive task (e.g., processing emotional poems vs. abstract concepts) modulates neural responses differently in HC and LC individuals.
• EEG-based neuroimaging provides insights into the neural underpinnings of creativity in design, highlighting specific brain regions and their functional connectivity.