Research Says Smelling Cinnamon Can Boost Creativity, But Not Because Of Scent
Photo 7227740 © Nikolay Petkov | Dreamstime.com
Cinnamon: the smell of pumpkin pie, Starbucks during the holidays, and… creativity?
That is, if you believe it to be.
A study published in PLOS One, uncovered by Inc., details that test participants experienced a creativity boost after being asked to smell a vial containing cinnamon. There’s a catch: They weren’t told they were whiffing that particular spice.
Scientists from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, split participants into two groups in this 2017 study. The control group was made aware of what was in the vial, while the others were informed that it contained a creativity-enhancing substance. Later on, both groups were tasked to complete some creativity tests.
While the first group performed as expected, the group that was told they were given the special substance excelled in the creativity tests, giving ideas that were more novel and exemplifying greater flexibility in problem-solving.
In adult terms, this effect is placebo. Kids call it magic. Bridging the two is belief.
By believing they’d become more creative, the people ended up performing significantly better.
“Creativity is often viewed as a trait characteristic of a person; however, creativity can also be viewed as a state, affected by expectation and motivation,” the researchers wrote in their paper.
“Motivation appears to be a central factor in creative performance, a finding which is hopeful because motivation can be bolstered, for example, by enhancing belief in one’s own competence.”
It can also be said that it was with the placebo (i.e. high expectations) that participants could achieve their full creative potential, and that normally, their performance would be stunted by their own inner critics. A placebo helps break those psychological barriers down.
So, if you’re feeling inhibited creatively, find your own cinnamon.
[via Inc., cover photo Nikolay Petkov | Dreamstime.com]
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