Researchers at Goldsmiths, University of London report in the journal PLoS ONE that they monitored action in the brains of 21 volunteers with electroencephalography (EEG) as they tackled verbal problems in an attempt to uncover what goes through the mind—literally—in order to observe what happens in the brain during an "aha!" moment of problem solving.
The researchers believed they could pin down brain signals that would enable them to predict whether a person could solve a particular problem or not.
In many cases, the subjects hit a wall, or what researchers refer to as a "mental impasse." The research team noticed an interesting phenomenon taking place in the brains of participants given hints: The clues were less likely to help if subjects had an especially high gamma rhythm pattern. The reason, Bhattacharya speculates, is that these participants were, in essence, locked into an inflexible way of thinking and less able to free their minds, and thereby unable to restructure the problem before them.
"People experience the "Aha!" feeling when they are not consciously monitoring what they are thinking," Bhattacharya says, adding that the sentiment is more of an emotional experience he likens to relief. "If you're applying your conscious brain information processing ability, then you're alpha." (Alpha brain rhythms are associated with a relaxed and open mind; volunteers who unwittingly solved problems showed more robust alpha rhythms than those who knowingly adjusted their thinking to come up with the answer.)
He says the findings indicate that it's better to tackle problems with an open mind than by concentrating too hard on them. In the future, Bhattacharya says, his team will attempt to predict in real-time whether a stumped subject will be able to solve a vexing problem and, also, whether they can manipulate brain rhythms to aid in finding a solution.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=what-are-we-thinking-when&ec=su_psych1
Link to original article:
Deconstructing Insight: EEG Correlates of Insightful Problem Solving
Simone Sandkühler1,2, Joydeep Bhattacharya1,
The researchers believed they could pin down brain signals that would enable them to predict whether a person could solve a particular problem or not.
In many cases, the subjects hit a wall, or what researchers refer to as a "mental impasse." The research team noticed an interesting phenomenon taking place in the brains of participants given hints: The clues were less likely to help if subjects had an especially high gamma rhythm pattern. The reason, Bhattacharya speculates, is that these participants were, in essence, locked into an inflexible way of thinking and less able to free their minds, and thereby unable to restructure the problem before them.
"People experience the "Aha!" feeling when they are not consciously monitoring what they are thinking," Bhattacharya says, adding that the sentiment is more of an emotional experience he likens to relief. "If you're applying your conscious brain information processing ability, then you're alpha." (Alpha brain rhythms are associated with a relaxed and open mind; volunteers who unwittingly solved problems showed more robust alpha rhythms than those who knowingly adjusted their thinking to come up with the answer.)
He says the findings indicate that it's better to tackle problems with an open mind than by concentrating too hard on them. In the future, Bhattacharya says, his team will attempt to predict in real-time whether a stumped subject will be able to solve a vexing problem and, also, whether they can manipulate brain rhythms to aid in finding a solution.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=what-are-we-thinking-when&ec=su_psych1
Link to original article:
Deconstructing Insight: EEG Correlates of Insightful Problem Solving
Simone Sandkühler1,2, Joydeep Bhattacharya1,
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