I don’t know what is more interesting about the recent New York Times article “Tracing the Spark of Creative Problem-Solving,” the article itself or the readers’ comments (thank you, Jan 
).
Many of the comments seem preoccupied with whether solving puzzles such as crosswords or Sudoku is a) pleasurable or b) an indicator of creativity. But both tangents miss the main points of the article. The author, Benedict Carey (a journalist and science writer who has also written a children’s “math mystery” novel, The Unknowns), states up front that creativity is complex:
[C]reative problem-solving usually requires both analysis and sudden out-of-the-box insight.
“You really end up toggling between the two, but I think that they are truly different brain states,” said Adam Anderson, a psychologist at the University of Toronto.
Perhaps more to the point, the article discusses the effect of humor and positive mood on our ability to “toggle” and to be creative:
[R]esearchers at the University of Toronto found that the visual areas in people in positive moods picked up more background detail, even when they were instructed to block out distracting information during a computer task.
The findings fit with dozens of experiments linking positive moods to better creative problem-solving. “The implication is that positive mood engages this broad, diffuse attentional state that is both perceptual and visual,” said Dr. Anderson. “You’re not only thinking more broadly, you’re literally seeing more. The two systems are working in parallel.”
Does doing what are essentially convergent problem-exercises such as crossword puzzles put everyone in a humorous or positive mood? Certainly not. What Carey is arguing, however, is that for some people, the escape provided by such hobbies can promote a “buoyant, open state of mind” that “isn’t a bad one to try on for size once in a while. Whether you’re working a puzzle or not.”
For people who don’t buy into Aristotle’s argument that happiness is the only goal that is an end in itself, they might consider whether being happier or more positive might serve their desire to use their creativity more succesfully.
One reader’s comment in response to the article offers insight into another aspect of our use (or not) of creativity—motivation:
It was argued by [Charles] Pearlman that the development of creative ability is enhanced by a strong effectance motivation, especially in young children. Left on their own, they choose more difficult problems to solve, thus challenging and training their cognitive abilities. Unfortunately, many smart children who may have also been motivated by effectance realize that teacher-, parent-, and society-pleasing behaviors are more likely to be rewarded, so their effectance motivation is diminished and their choice of activities is driven by the expectations of others. Only those who have the strongest urges toward effectance can retain this self-motivated proclivity toward choosing tough problems. [emphasis added]
In other words, self-motivated creative behaviors are often stifled by the expectations of grades and conformity.
What can we take away from all of this? If you don’t like crossword puzzles (or aren’t any good at them), don’t assume you aren’t creative or smart. Just find whatever activity does relax you, make you laugh, and gives you the confidence to break out of negative thought patterns. Then do it more often.
