Accumulated evidence showed enhanced creative thinking skills as a function of diverse neurodevelopmental disorders and pathological brain conditions. It has been proposed that this association is rooted in executive functions. Divergent thinking benefits from an impairment of inhibitory processes, where a depletion of resources is often associated with atypical neural development and acquired pathological brain conditions. Evidence also shows a crucial role of the dopaminergic system in creative thinking, with conditions characterized by dopamine imbalance supporting creative drive. Processing anomalies in diverse cognitive functions (e.g., hierarchical visual perception, working memory updating) and the preference for impulsive over deliberate behaviors (which are associated with several neurodevelopmental disorders) have been hypothesized to enhance creative cognition. However, previous experimental investigations on clinical populations have reported inconsistent findings, due to the wide variety of tests and measures of creative performance.
The aim of this Research Topic is to further the knowledge on the cognitive and neural basis of creativity by studying clinical populations in different developmental stages. We welcome empirical contributions using different methodologies including both behavioral and neuroscience approaches. Review and opinion articles that provide detailed discussions of models or mechanisms that account for the relationship between creativity and atypical brain conditions are also welcomed. We aim to fuel a meaningful discussion about the link between creativity and pathology, which would provide a state-of-the-art overview about the creative potential in diverse clinical conditions.
Accumulated evidence showed enhanced creative thinking skills as a function of diverse neurodevelopmental disorders and pathological brain conditions. It has been proposed that this association is rooted in executive functions. Divergent thinking benefits from an impairment of inhibitory processes, where a depletion of resources is often associated with atypical neural development and acquired pathological brain conditions. Evidence also shows a crucial role of the dopaminergic system in creative thinking, with conditions characterized by dopamine imbalance supporting creative drive. Processing anomalies in diverse cognitive functions (e.g., hierarchical visual perception, working memory updating) and the preference for impulsive over deliberate behaviors (which are associated with several neurodevelopmental disorders) have been hypothesized to enhance creative cognition. However, previous experimental investigations on clinical populations have reported inconsistent findings, due to the wide variety of tests and measures of creative performance.
The aim of this Research Topic is to further the knowledge on the cognitive and neural basis of creativity by studying clinical populations in different developmental stages. We welcome empirical contributions using different methodologies including both behavioral and neuroscience approaches. Review and opinion articles that provide detailed discussions of models or mechanisms that account for the relationship between creativity and atypical brain conditions are also welcomed. We aim to fuel a meaningful discussion about the link between creativity and pathology, which would provide a state-of-the-art overview about the creative potential in diverse clinical conditions.