P163 The role of the angular gyrus in creative and automatic tasks

• Published in: Clinical neurophysiology Vol. 128; no. 3; p. e97
• Main Authors: Pick, H, Lavidor, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.03.2017
• Subjects: Neurology
• ISSN: 1388-2457; 1872-8952
• DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2016.10.284

Introduction Research suggests that creativity entails forming of new associative links between otherwise unrelated concepts, these new links should be in some way useful. In addition, the Angular gyrus (AG) plays a role in complex information integration and knowledge retrieval. Neuroimaging creativity studies observed deactivation in the AG while participants were engaged in creative tasks (Fink et al., 2010; Berkowitz and Ansari, 2010). This deactivation can reflect inhibition of prevalent stimulus-related information retrieval that allows more original responses reach conscious awareness. Objectives In the current study we hypothesize that automaticity is the opposite of creativity, hence we aim to enhance creativity by decreasing automaticity. Materials & methods Under this hypothesis we will use transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to activate the AG in order to enhance automaticity, and to deactivate the AG in order to enhance creativity. Healthy subjects in the enhanced creativity group will receive cathodal stimulation above the right angular gyrus, while the enhanced automaticity participants will receive double anodal stimulation to the right and left AG (p3 and P4). In addition, each participant will undergo a sham (control) condition, with one week interval between the experiment condition and the sham condition. Participants will perform two creative tasks, the Alternative uses task (AUT) (Fink et al., 2010) and the Remote association task, and two automatic tasks of lexical decisions. Results The study is due to end on June 2016, current 4 subjects generated more original solutions in the AUT task under the cathodal AG stimulation, and were faster in the lexical decision tasks under the double anodal stimulation. Conclusion Under the cathodal stimulation of the AG, participants showed better creativity performance. The double anodal stimulation improved automaticity performance.