Stimulation or Meditation? Investigating the Effects of tDCS, Mindfulness and Personality Traits on Creative Thinking
Claudio Lucchiari, Chiara Esposito, Giuseppe Rocca, Maria Elide Vanutelli
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 47 |
| Population | Healthy volunteers |
| Interventions | tDCS mindfulness meditation |
| Dose | 1.5 mA for 20 minutes |
| Duration | 4-day training with pre/post assessment |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The authors report that the combination of real tDCS and real mindfulness meditation was most successful in improving convergent thinking and cognitive efficiency, while real stimulation with fake meditation was more effective in modulating verbal fluency. They interpret these effects in relation to the inferior frontal gyrus, the Default Mode Network, and personality attitudes. |
Abstract
Divergent thinking (DT) and convergent thinking (CT) are typically considered the two faces of creativity and are associated to different neuro-functional networks. Previous research underlined that brain stimulation and meditation can modulate the creative process. However, their effect over DT e CT is still not clear.
Purpose: The aim of the present study was to explore if and how tDCS and mindfulness meditation could modulate creativity outcomes by administering a 4-day training whose efficacy was measured by a pre/post assessment.
Method: Fourty-seven healthy volunteers were randomly assigned to four experimental conditions: A) real stimulation, real meditation; B) sham stimulation, real meditation; C) real stimulation, fake meditation; D) real meditation alone. tDCS stimulation was applied with the anode over F8 (Inferior Frontal Gyrus, IFG) and the cathode on the left supraorbital area for 20 minutes at 1.5 mA. Also, personality traits were considered.
Results: Results revealed that training A was the most successful in improving convergent thinking and cognitive efficiency, while training C was more effective in modulating verbal fluency.
Conclusions: Results have been discussed considering the role of IFG and the Default Mode Network (DMN) for DT and CT, together with personality attitudes. Also, future directions have been suggested.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |