Originality of divergent thinking is associated with working memory–related brain activity: Evidence from a large sample study
Hikaru Takeuchi,
Yasuyuki Taki,
Rui Nouchi,
Ryoichi Yokoyama,
Yuka Kotozaki,
Seishu Nakagawa,
Atsushi Sekiguchi,
Kunio Iizuka,
Sugiko Hanawa,
Tsuyoshi Araki,
Carlos Makoto Miyauchi,
Kohei Sakaki,
Yuko Sassa,
Takayuki Nozawa,
Shigeyuki Ikeda,
Susumu Yokota,
Daniele Magistro,
Ryuta Kawashima
Affiliations
Hikaru Takeuchi
Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Corresponding author. Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, IDAC, Tohoku University, 4-1 Seiryo-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan.
Yasuyuki Taki
Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Division of Medical Neuroimaging Analysis, Department of Community Medical Supports, Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Rui Nouchi
Department of Cognitive Health Science, Institute of Development, Aging, and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Smart Aging Research Center, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Ryoichi Yokoyama
School of Medicine, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
Yuka Kotozaki
Division of Clinical Research, Medical-Industry Translational Research Center, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
Seishu Nakagawa
Department of Human Brain Science, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Division of Psychiatry, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Sendai, Japan
Atsushi Sekiguchi
Division of Medical Neuroimaging Analysis, Department of Community Medical Supports, Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Department of Behavioral Medicine, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
Kunio Iizuka
Department of Psychiatry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
Sugiko Hanawa
Department of Human Brain Science, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Tsuyoshi Araki
ADVANTAGE Risk Management Co., Ltd, Japan
Carlos Makoto Miyauchi
Department of Psychiatry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
Kohei Sakaki
Department of Advanced Brain Science, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Yuko Sassa
Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Takayuki Nozawa
Research Center for the Earth Inclusive Sensing Empathizing with Silent Voices, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan
Shigeyuki Ikeda
Department of Ubiquitous Sensing, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Susumu Yokota
Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
Daniele Magistro
Department of Sport Science, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
Ryuta Kawashima
Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Smart Aging Research Center, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Department of Advanced Brain Science, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Department of Ubiquitous Sensing, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
The originality of creativity measured by divergent thinking (CMDT) is a unique variable that is positively correlated with psychometric intelligence and other psychological measures. Here, we aimed to determine the associations of CMDT originality/fluency scores and brain activity associated with working memory (WM) and simple cognitive processes during the N-back paradigm in a cohort of 1221 young adults. We observed that originality/fluency scores were associated with greater brain activity during the 0-back simple cognitive task and 2-back WM task in key nodes of the ventral attention system in the right hemisphere. Further, subjects with higher originality/fluency scores showed lower task-induced deactivations in areas of the default mode network, especially during the 2-back task. Psychological analyses revealed the associations of originality/fluency scores with both psychometric intelligence and systemizing. We also observed the effects of interaction between sex and originality/fluency scores on functional activity during the 0-back task in posterior parts of the default mode network together with other areas as well as simple processing speed. These results indicate that the originality of CMDT is associated with (a) greater activation of the ventral attention system, which is involved in reorienting attention and (b) reduced task-induced deactivation of the default mode network, which is indicative of alterations in attentional reallocation, and (c) cognitive correlates of originality of CMDT and revealed sex differences in these associations.
