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Researchers found that an aha moment corresponds to a burst of high-frequency brain waves in the brain’s right temporal lobe, just above the right ear.
Scientists have long looked to understand the source of leaps of creativity or breakthrough thoughts that we call “aha! moments.” And, according to a story in Scientific American, “The Brain Science of Elusive ‘Aha! Moments,” that knowledge is now within reach: “We now know where it happens in the brain and when it’s more likely to happen,” write the authors of the article.
By using electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which measure electrical activity and changes in blood flow in the brain, researchers including John Kounios, a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Drexel University and the article’s co-author, found that “an aha! solution corresponds to a burst of high-frequency brain waves in the brain’s right temporal lobe, just above the right ear.” That part of the brain is connected to many other brain regions, including one associated with making connections between things that may seem unrelated at first, the article said.
The story also explored research that illuminates larger questions around the kinds of mindsets and environments that make such leaps more likely, including many that are relevant to event organizers and participants. One finding is that insight is more likely to occur when you stop grinding away at problems and take a break. Our brain’s analytical processes enable people to think in a focused, strategic way, “but they can also curb creativity by limiting thought to straightforward plans,” just like a horse’s blinders, the story said.
Breaks are particularly effective when combined with a change in environment, even one as simple as going to the grocery store, the article said. When you change your environment, “you may encounter a trigger — a person, a street sign, anything — that can spark an aha! moment because the trigger bears some resemblance to or association with the needed solution,” the story said.
And settings where people feel a sense of psychological safety — which consulting company McKinsey & Company has defined, in part, as environments where people feel encouraged to share their ideas without fear of personal judgment or of offending others — also play a role. When you feel relaxed, your brain is better able to detect the presence of alternative solutions to problems, unlike when you are anxious, according to the Scientific American article.
Breakthroughs also are associated with being outside or in a large room, because “your attention expands to take in the large space. That broadened awareness shifts the mind toward considering the whole rather than the parts, thereby enhancing insightful thinking,” the article’s authors write. If that reminds you of a meeting ballroom or event amphitheater, another finding helps explain why the lights are often dimmed in those spaces: “People solve more thinking problems when they close their eyes. In contrast, objects that grab attention will narrow your focus on details and induce you to think analytically,” the article said.
In fact, when the authors summed up their advice for setting the stage for creative breakthroughs, their recipe sounded a lot like a well-designed meeting: “When you are stuck,” they wrote, “take a break and expose yourself to a variety of environments and people to increase the chance you will encounter a triggering stimulus.”
Their recommendations also give support to meeting professionals who make their events places where participants feel a sense of belonging, and design agendas that make room for rest. “Perhaps the most important scientific lesson about insight, though, is that it is as fragile as it is beneficial,” they write. “Anxiety and sleep deprivation can squash these precious gifts.”
Barbara Palmer is Convene’s deputy editor.