Scientists Confirms Drinking of Alcohol Boosts Creativity
Recall that new wave of thought, that sparkling idea, that rush of confidence, that switch of style, or whatever new thing you found out when you last took alcohol?
Well, it is nothing to be surprised about as alcohol has been proven to boost our creative juices. Several artists have had muses of alcohol, and finally, scientists have put the argument to rest.
A group of Austrian researchers in the University of Graz have concluded research that confirms that alcohol taken in moderation allows one to have more spontaneous thoughts, say the experts. This is set in motion as alcohol loosens the brain's controlling instincts.
“Alcohol is so linked with creativity,” said lead author Dr. Mathias Benedek. “Previous research has found almost half of the great writers had a history of drinking. We found that a small drink can indeed help with certain aspects of creativity.”
The research, which was published in the journal Consciousness and Cognition, saw a group of 132 men and women complete a series of psychological tests before and after drinking alcohol. Participants were asked to find the link between the words “swiss”, “blue” and “cake”. Half of the participants were given a 0.5% lager, while the other half were asked to drink a 5.2% beer, which they weren't able to distinguish between.
The second group, who had the stronger beer, scored an average of 6/10 in the test, as they were able to decipher that the word which linked them was "cheese". The other half of drinkers scored an average of 4/10. The alcohol-drinkers also exceeded in a creative thinking task, in which they had to suggest alternative uses for tires with "a swing" deemed one of the most creative answers.
“There are two theories for how this works,” explained Dr Benedek. “The first being that when you are really focusing on solving a problem, you can become fixated so that your mind gets stuck on one way of addressing it. Alcohol makes it more difficult to keep all the parameters of the task in mind, but that can also help you come at it from another direction.
“The second theory is that alcohol, which is distracting from the central task, allows you to tap into your unconscious mind and find alternative solutions,” he explained.
However, significantly, the effects were only felt by participants that consumed just one pint of beer, which is just about a glass of wine or two tots of whisky.
