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Chapter 13 - Brain Aging and Creativity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 November 2019

By
Ira S. Fischler  and
Kenneth M. Heilman
Edited by
Kenneth M. Heilman  and
Stephen E. Nadeau
Kenneth M. Heilman
Affiliation:
University of Florida
Stephen E. Nadeau
Affiliation:
University of Florida
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Summary

Creativity is among our greatest human gifts. Scientific interest in creativity goes back at least a century, but only recently have the tools of cognitive neuropsychology and neuroscience been available to explore creativity. In this chapter, we review the stages and processes of creative ability, and how these are instantiated in the brain –in terms of both specific neural regions and anatomically distributed networks. We focus on whether and how creative abilities may decline with aging, and consider how, as we grow older, they may be sustained or even enhanced.

Keywords

creativityagingcognitionbrainnetworkconnectivitydivergent thinkinginsightfrontal lobe
Type
Chapter
Information
Cognitive Changes and the Aging Brain , pp. 188 - 202
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

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