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A sudden comprehension that solves a problem, reinterprets a situation, explains a joke, or resolves an ambiguous percept is called an insight (i.e., the “ Aha! moment”). Psychologists have studied insight using behavioral methods for nearly a century. Recently, the tools of cognitive neuroscience have been applied to this phenomenon. A series of studies have used electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study the neural correlates of the “ Aha! moment” and its antecedents. Although the experience of insight is sudden and can seem disconnected from the immediately preceding thought, these studies show that insight is the culmination of a series of brain states and processes operating at different time scales. Elucidation of these precursors suggests interventional opportunities for the facilitation of insight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Accumulating evidence suggests that top-down processes, reflected by frontal-midline theta-band (4–8 Hz) electroencephalogram (EEG) oscillations, strengthen the activation of a memory set during short-term memory (STM) retention. In addition, the amplitude of posterior alpha-band (8–13 Hz) oscillations during STM retention is thought to reflect a mechanism that protects fragile STM activations from interference by gating bottom-up sensory inputs. The present study addressed two important questions about these phenomena. First, why have previous studies not consistently found memory set-size effects on frontal-midline theta? Second, how does posterior alpha participate in STM retention? To answer these questions, large-scale network connectivity during STM retention was examined by computing EEG wavelet coherence during the retention period of a modified Sternberg task using visually-presented letters as stimuli. The results showed (a) increasing theta-band coherence between frontal-midline and left temporal-parietal sites with increasing memory load, and (b) increasing alpha-band coherence between midline parietal and left temporal/parietal sites with increasing memory load. These findings support the view that theta-band coherence, rather than amplitude, is the key factor in selective top-down strengthening of the memory set and demonstrate that posterior alpha-band oscillations associated with sensory gating are involved in STM retention by participating in the STM network. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Neurofeedback (NF) is an electroencephalographic (EEG) biofeedback technique for training individuals to alter their brain activity via operant conditioning. Research has shown that NF helps reduce symptoms of several neurological and psychiatric disorders, with ongoing research currently investigating applications to other disorders and to the enhancement of non-disordered cognition. The present article briefly reviews the fundamentals and current status of NF therapy and research and illustrates the basic approach with an interim report on a pilot study aimed at developing a new NF protocol for improving cognitive function in the elderly. EEG peak alpha frequency (PAF) has been shown to correlate positively with cognitive performance and to correlate negatively with age after childhood. The present pilot study used a double-blind controlled design to investigate whether training older individuals to increase PAF would result in improved cognitive performance. The results suggested that PAF NF improved cognitive processing speed and executive function, but that it had no clear effect on memory. In sum, the results suggest that the PAF NF protocol is a promising technique for improving selected cognitive functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When people try to solve a problem, they go through distinct steps (encoding, ideation, evaluation, etc.) recurrently and spontaneously. To disentangle different cognitive processes that unfold throughout a trial, we applied an unsupervised machine learning method to electroencephalogram (EEG) data continuously recorded while 39 participants attempted 153 Compound Remote Associates problems (CRA). CRA problems are verbal puzzles that can be solved in either insight-leaning or analysis-leaning manner. We fitted a Hidden Markov Model to the time-frequency transformed EEG signals and decoded each trial as a time-resolved state sequence. The model characterizes hidden brain states with spectrally resolved power topography. Seven states were identified with distinct activation patterns in the theta (4–7 Hz), alpha (8–9 Hz and 10–13 Hz), and gamma (25–50 Hz) bands. Notably, a state featuring widespread activation only in alpha-band frequency emerged, from this data-driven approach, which exhibited dynamic characteristics associated with specific temporal stages and outcomes (whether solved with insight or analysis) of the trials. The state dynamics derived from the model overlap and extend previous literature on the cognitive function of alpha oscillation: the " alpha-state " probability peaks before stimulus onset and decreases before response. In trials solved with insight, relative to solved with analysis, the alpha-state is more likely to be visited and maintained during preparation and solving periods, and its probability declines more sharply immediately preceding a response. This novel paradigm provides a way to extract dynamic features that characterize problem-solving stages and potentially provide a novel window into the nature of the underlying cognitive processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two general strategies for solving a problem. Insight is the sudden realization of a novel idea or problem solution accompanied by an "aha" experience. Analysis occurs in a conscious, deliberate fashion without an "aha" experience. Previous research has shown that brain activity during a preparatory period immediately before a problem is presented can predict whether the subsequently presented problem will be solved by insight or by analysis. Those prior studies used a type of brief verbal problem called compound remote associates (CRA). To determine whether prestimulus activity predicts subsequent insight versus analytic solving for other types of problems, the present study used an anagram task. We examined high-density electroencephalograms (EEGs) immediately preceding the presentation of anagrams and found that during the 2-s prestimulus interval there was greater beta-band activity recorded over right central-parietal cortex prior to analytic solving compared with insightful solving. EEG source reconstruction showed that this activity originated in left mid-cingulate cortex (MCC) and the right postcentral gyrus. In contrast to prior work, we found no evidence of a significant interaction between insight-related prestimulus brain activity and positive mood, although positive mood was associated with greater activity in anterior cingulate cortex and with a larger number of insight solutions. The present MCC results suggest that participants' anagram-solving strategies may be influenced by allostasis , that is, the estimation and marshalling of neurocognitive resources required to cope with an expected task. Specifically, when a participant adequately prepares for an upcoming problem, then MCC activity is high, enabling solution by resource-intensive analytic processing. Alternatively, when preparation is insufficient for analytic processing, then MCC activity is low and subsequent solving occurs by low-demand insight processing. The current findings and explanatory model differ from those of previous studies that used a CRA task, suggesting the possibility of complex interactions between task-type and procedure-type in determining the nature of prestimulus preparation. Future research examining such interactions may yield results that benefit educators who teach students problem-solving strategies. • People can solve problems using insight or analytic strategies. • Solving strategy selection is influenced by pre-problem brain activity. • Preparatory pre-problem brain activity varies with the type of task. • Analytic solving of anagrams follows mid-cingulate cortex preparatory activity. • Mid-cingulate activity is thought to reflect allostasis, the priming of needed resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moments of insight, a phenomenon of creative cognition in which an idea suddenly emerges into awareness as an "Aha!" are often reported to be affectively positive experiences. We tested the hypothesis that problem-solving by insight is accompanied by neural reward processing. We recorded high-density EEGs while participants solved a series of anagrams. For each solution, they reported whether the answer had occurred to them as a sudden insight or whether they had derived it deliberately and incrementally (i.e., "analytically'). Afterwards, they filled out a questionnaire that measures general dispositional reward sensitivity. We computed the time-frequency representations of the EEGs for trials with insight (I) solutions and trials with analytic (A) solutions and subtracted them to obtain an I-A time-frequency representation for each electrode. Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) analyses tested for significant I-A and reward-sensitivity effects. SPM revealed the time, frequency, and scalp locations of several I ​> ​A effects. No A ​> ​I effect was observed. The primary neural correlate of insight was a burst of (I ​> ​A) gamma-band oscillatory activity over prefrontal cortex approximately 500 ​ms before participants pressed a button to indicate that they had solved the problem. We correlated the I-A time-frequency representation with reward sensitivity to discover insight-related effects that were modulated by reward sensitivity. This revealed a separate anterior prefrontal burst of gamma-band activity, approximately 100 ​ms after the primary I-A insight effect, which we interpreted to be an insight-related reward signal. This interpretation was supported by source reconstruction showing that this signal was generated in part by orbitofrontal cortex, a region associated with reward learning and hedonically pleasurable experiences such as food, positive social experiences, addictive drugs, and orgasm. These findings support the notion that for many people insight is rewarding. Additionally, these results may explain why many people choose to engage in insight-generating recreational and vocational activities such as solving puzzles, reading murder mysteries, creating inventions, or doing research. This insight-related reward signal may be a manifestation of an evolutionarily adaptive mechanism for the reinforcement of exploration, problem solving, and creative cognition. • Problem-solving by insight and analysis recruit different brain activity. • Reward sensitivity modulates brain activity during problem solving. • Insights evoke a neural reward signal in people high in reward sensitivity. • The insight reward signal is too quick to be conscious, post-solution appraisal. • This reward signal implies that creative cognition is intrinsically motivating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conflicting theories identify creativity either with frontal-lobe mediated (Type-2) executive control processes or (Type-1) associative processes that are disinhibited when executive control is relaxed. Musical (jazz) improvisation is an ecologically valid test-case to distinguish between these views because relatively slow, deliberate, executive-control processes should not dominate during high-quality, real-time improvisation. In the present study, jazz guitarists (n ​= ​32) improvised to novel chord sequences while 64-channel EEGs were recorded. Jazz experts rated each improvisation for creativity, technical proficiency and aesthetic appeal. Surface-Laplacian-transformed EEGs recorded during the performances were analyzed in the scalp-frequency domain using SPM12. Significant clusters of high-frequency (beta-band and gamma-band) activity were observed when higher-quality versus lower-quality improvisations were compared. Higher-quality improvisations were associated with predominantly posterior left-hemisphere activity; lower-quality improvisations were associated with right temporo-parietal and fronto-polar activity. However, after statistically controlling for experience (defined as the number of public performances previously given), performance quality was a function of right-hemisphere, largely right-frontal, activity. These results support the notion that superior creative production is associated with hypofrontality and right-hemisphere activity thereby supporting a dual-process model of creativity in which experience influences the balance between executive and associative processes. This study also highlights the idea that the functional neuroanatomy of creative production depends on whether creativity is defined in terms of the quality of products or the type of cognitive processes involved. • Neural and behavioral evidence for an expertise-dependent, dual-process model of creativity. • Performance quality/creativity a function of right-hemispheric activity. • Superior creative production is associated with hypofrontality and the inhibition of executive Type-2 processes. • Sophisticated EEG analysis (SPM12; surface-Laplacian transformations) and machine-learning (k-fold validation) techniques. • Collection of high-density EEG during live guitar improvisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]