How neuroscience and psychology help understand creativity with Shelley Carson, PhD

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"The differences between the brains of highly effective creative achievers and the brains of the rest of us are far less important than the commonalities."

Shelley Carson continues in her book Your Creative Brain:

"There are certainly genetic differences that influence creativity, and of course, there will always be people who are more creative than others. However, through the study of highly creative brains, we’ve found that all of us have creative brains. We are all—barring serious brain injury—equipped with basically the same brain structures."

Shelley Carson earned her Ph.D. in psychology from Harvard University, where she continues to teach and conduct research on creativity, psychopathology, and resilience.

Topics in our audio interview related to the creative mind include:

* the seven brain activation patterns she discusses in her book

* the relation of creativity with ADHD

* flexibility in thought

* mood states like anxiety and fear.

Responding to a question of mine about highly sensitive people, she says that usually she emphasizes the value of taking in more ideas and information to fuel creativity – but people who are already taking in too much information may need to cut down on their input, to “allow them to move forward in the creative process.”

Her book: Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity, and Innovation in Your Life - [Amazon] … [Bookshop]

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ADHD and creative thinking

From our interview: (me:) You've talked about both creative and ADHD people sharing some cognitive behaviors, such as distractibility, inattentiveness, and novelty-seeking. How can those traits be positive for creative work?