Mapping the brain networks underlying creativity enhancement via aesthetic experience.

Abstract

Aesthetic experience is widely believed to foster creativity, yet the neural mechanisms mediating this link remain poorly defined. Here, we propose five key brain networks that may support this process and systematically review the evidence. In the creative generation stage, immersive aesthetic stimuli first activate the default mode network (DMN), which supports memory retrieval and spontaneous divergent thinking. Concurrently, the executive control network (ECN) remains suppressed, enabling associative thinking and intuitive creativity, while the salience network (SN) monitors novel or emotionally salient features. During the creative evaluation stage, aesthetic processing synergistically engages the SN, DMN, and ECN. The SN flexibly modulates the coupling between the DMN and ECN. The DMN contributes to affective and interoceptive evaluation, retrieves prototypical events, and supports insight generation, whereas the ECN inhibits conventional ideas, facilitates mental set shifting, and promotes the formation of novel associations. In the creative expression stage, aesthetic experience recruits the sensorimotor network (SMN), enhancing creative output and improvisational capability. Across all three stages, the reward system (RS) plays a dual role in both initiating and sustaining creativity. Dopamine released in response to aesthetic pleasure increases cognitive flexibility and task persistence during the generation and evaluation stages. In the expression stage, it maintains high creative motivation, thereby driving creative implementation and reinforcing emotional resonance. Importantly, none of these stages is mediated by a single brain region or network; instead, creativity is supported by the dynamic reconfiguration of connections within and between these networks. Finally, the review addresses current challenges in the field and proposes promising future directions.