Right Brain Vs. Left Brain: The Way The Two Sides Communicate Promotes Creativity

There is a culture of self-help books that like to talk about how essential the right brain is for creativity integration, and that the left brain is purely logical and can't have much say in a creative process. Recent research is showing that this long-held belief is much more simplistic than we may have recently understood. Research from Duke University has found that highly creative people have more significant correlation of communication between each hemisphere of their brain. This means that the way the left side of the brain interacts with the right side, and vice versa, is what properly influences creative thought and action.

Statisticians David Dunson of Duke University and Daniele Durante of the University of Padova studied the white matter connections that the brain makes to find any conclusive evidence of these claims. They found over 68 separate brain regions in the averaged-aged college volunteer. The white matter of the brain typically resides underneath the outer grey matter and is composed of axons and wires that allow over a billion different neurons to connect and carry signals between the two.

Making The Connections

Neurologists were also present during the study as the exact processes of the brain were examined by looking at various tensor imaging, MRIs and other types of brain tests. Problem solving entitled divergent thinking was assessed to understand the importance of the two sides conversing with one another. The people who scored in the top 15 percent on the tests that were made strictly for creativity achieved the most connections between the right and left hemispheres.

The brain is much more interconnected than we think. Many of the differences that were found were in the frontal lobe which deals mostly with thinking through a problem or issue prior to taking any definitive action. Dunson also found that this specific approach could be used in order to predict the probability an individual is deeply inclined towards identifying as a highly creative person.

Searching For More Information

This new wave of thinking decides that instead of focusing solely on specific regions of the brain, that the best use of testing and what the data shows is the dance in conversation that both hemispheres do with one another in order to reach peak creativity. The researchers are now searching for any type of correlative information that can tell them if this type of connectivity matters or differs based on I.Q.

This type of testing can also potentially be used in the testing of Alzheimer's disease and can have a hand in greater early detection. It would help to distinguish the forgetfulness and normal signs of aging with the early signs of the disease that can be devastating to family, friends and sufferers. These types of studying patterns can also be helpful when finding out more information about diseased brains - to better understand neurological conditions, mental illnesses, epilepsy, and overall health within the brain space.

If this type of information can be beneficial in the treatment of serious brain issues, such as coma or chronic traumatic encephalopathy - otherwise known as traumatic brain injury - it could be huge for the medical community and their ability to better treat these devastating issues. Additional research has to be done.

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Founder Ray Spotts has a passion for all things natural and has made a life study of nature as it relates to health and well-being. Ray became a forerunner bringing products to market that are extraordinarily effective and free from potentially harmful chemicals and additives. For this reason Ray formed Trusted Health Products, a company you can trust for clean, effective, and healthy products. Ray is an organic gardener, likes fishing, hiking, and teaching and mentoring people to start new businesses. You can get his book for free, “How To Succeed In Business Based On God’s Word,” at www.rayspotts.com.