#48 Creativity in the Wild – with Professor Ruth Ann Atchley

This week on Being Human, I interview Professor Ruth Ann Atchley from the University of South Florida. Ruth Ann is the author of the much-cited paper “Creativity in the Wild”:
– the first scientific study to find a link between creativity and exposure to nature,
– discovering a 50% increase in creative reasoning after four days of hiking and no tech.

We also explore:

– The importance of “softly fascinating” stimuli to replenish our attentional resources
– The imperative to get away from the ‘hijacking’ effect of modern tech
– Why it’s not just about being in nature

Enjoy!

Links:
Creativity in the Wild – https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0051474
Cowboys and Cawe Dwellers – https://www.amazon.com/Cowboys-Cave-Dwellers-Basketmaker-Archaeology/dp/0933452470
The Restorative Benefits of Nature – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0272494495900012
Directed Attention as a Common Resource for Executive Functioning and Self-Regulation – https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1745691609356784
The Cognitive Benefits of Interacting with Nature – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19121124
Stress recovery during exposure to natural and urban environments – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494405801847

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