Many famous neurotics like the film-maker Woody Allen, artist Vincent van Gogh, or scientist Sir Isaac Newton had suffered for their art.
A new study has found what such individuals tend to have in common. Their brain is more sensitive to perceived threats compared to those of other people. Exactly that "panic button" tendency is what makes them not only overactive, but also more creative and imaginative, according to psychologists.
The personality expert Dr Adam Perkins, from King's College London, declared that science is still a long way off from fully explaining neuroticism, however, he added, he hopes that his new theory can help people to better make sense of their own experiences. It shows that even of being highly neurotic might be unpleasant, it also has some creative benefits.
Perkins theory can further new research on the topic, as it provides a straightforward unifying framework to tie together the emotional and creative aspects of neuroticism.
According to psychologists, neuroticism is one of the big personality traits, along with conscientiousness, openness, agreeableness and extraversion. Neuroticism is characterized by negative emotions such as worry, fear, anxiety, envy, frustration and loneliness.
Brain scan studies come to support the idea that neuroticism is associated with creativity, highlighting neural circuits that regulate self-generated thought. The "panic button" in the brain, the amygdala, plays the role of a key emotional centre.
Scientists believe that amygdala can trigger an inappropriate fear response in case that the perceived threats are conjured up in the brain's medial prefrontal cortex. According to Dr. Perkings, neuroticism can be associated with a highly active imagination, and this overactive imagination may act "as a built-in threat generator".
The researcher published his study in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences. His research comes to support the theory that many neurotics may channel their neuroticism into problem solving and creativity. This comes from the particular way these people daydream.
Neurotics that tend to have more negative thoughts would display in the medial prefrontal cortex area in their brain a greater activity. According to scientists, those who have a high level of activity in this particular brain area have their mind wandering to some threat-related thoughts.
For some, the longer they dwell on a problem, the more likely it is they come up with a creative solution, and this is what gives neurotics a potential advantage to their daydreaming.
