Alcohol and creativity do not mix as well as we’ve been led to believe. In MA Boden, ed. And, conversely, what effect does creative activity have on alcohol use? Research has shown that alcohol tends to reduce people’s ability to focus in on some things and ignore others, which also happens to benefit creative problem solving. ACM Classification Keywords H.5.2 [User Interfaces]: Theory and methods. H.5.0 [General]. In order to answer these questions, relevant information was obtained from the biographies of 34 well known, heavy drinking, 20th century writers, artists or composers/performers. start to drink to expect a spark in creativity, regardless of what is said.] Alcohol and Writing: Does it affect creativity, and if so, how? INTRODUCTION Always remember that I have taken more out of alcohol than alcohol has taken out of me. The answer has to do with alcohol’s effect on working memory: the brainpower that helps us keep what we want in mind and what we don’t want out. Dimensions of Creativity, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1994, 143--158. Many famous artists and writers were alcoholics, for example Ernest Hemingway and Edgar Allan Poe, which may be a reason why we can easily believe that alcohol spurns creativity. Creativity Research J., 13 (2), 411--416 Google Scholar; Gardner, H. Chapter 6, The creator's patterns. I had courage to dive into the unknown and give it a go. General Terms Design, Experimentation. [Note: none of this should be an endorsement for any minors to drink or any recovering alcoholics to drink. Anecdotal reports link alcohol intoxication to creativity, while cognitive research highlights the crucial role of cognitive control for creative thought. Alcohol’s Effect on Creativity. I just found a few articles after googling "alcohol" and "creativity," but don't let you non-alcoholics, recovering alcoholics, teetotalers, et al. This study tested effects of acute alcohol intoxication on elaboration and revision in the verification phase of Wallas's (1926/1970) four stage model of creativity. Alcohol and Creativity: A Pilot Study Jesse C. Smith Georgia Institute of Technology jesse.smith@gatech.edu ABSTRACT Teresa M. Smith IT Consultant terri.m.smith@gmail.com Ellen Yi-Luen Do Georgia Institute of Technology ellendo@gatech.edu In this paper, we describe the design, execution, and results of a study of the effects of alcohol consumption on creativity. Is alcohol use a help or a hindrance for creativity? Analysis of this information yielded a number of interesting findings. We are … Why might being intoxicated lead to improved creativity? This study examined the effects of mild alcohol intoxication on creative cognition in a placebo-controlled design. I began to notice on the days following the evenings when I chose not to drink that I felt lighter, much more clear and focused, well rested, and eager to conquer challenging creative work (most notably, working on my book). Creativity, alcohol, social, interaction, design, sculpture, drawing, prose, poetry.