Comparison of the effects of the subjective complexity and verbal creativity on EEG spectral power parameters

Abstract

The EEG recording was made when the subjects performed tasks that involved overcoming the stereotype (creative) and retrieving information from memory (noncreative) with the usual and complicated presentation of the initial material (incomplete proverbs and sayings without concluding words). The subjective complexity of the task performance under different conditions was assessed. The EEG power from 19 EEG derivations was compared in the β2 and γ frequency bands. The creative task performance was associated with a marked increase in the EEG power; significantly more complicated noncreative tasks were not accompanied by marked changes in the EEG power in these bands.