Stuck in a cubicle looking for inspiration and creativity? Move your laptop and yourself to a coffee shop. A study (in the Journal of Consumer Research) investigated the link between creativity and noise levels. The results showed that those who worked in moderately noisy environments with sound levels on par with your average bustling café scored higher on tests of creativity and were also rated as more innovative by other participants. The study added to research suggesting that small doses of distraction prompt the mind to work at a more abstract level, which is also a more creative level. The possibility that sound energized people was considered but rejected: participants’ heart rates did rise when they first encountered noise, but soon subsided.
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