Noise: It Helps a Body Think

I've written before about how I often find it easier to concentrate if I have noise to tune out and can actually find it harder to focus when things are too quiet.  I thought it was just me, or at least a preference that I and some others have.  According to this article, though, it's universal t a certain degree for everyone.

Turn It Up: How the Right Amount of Ambient Noise Increases Creativity

Perhaps this is why so many creatives often retreat to public spaces like coffee shops. They’ve become a virtual second office to so many. Specifically, settings like coffee shops contain the right level of ambient noise that just happens to trigger our minds to think more creatively. A paper published late last year in the Journal of Consumer Research, argues that the ideal work environment for creative projects should contain a little bit of background noise. . . .

Researchers found that those exposed to a moderate level of ambient noise significantly out-performed those in the other groups. . . .

Background noise creates a distraction, but balance is key. A moderate level of background noise creates just enough distraction to break people out of their patterns of thinking and nudge them to let their imagination wander, while still keeping them from losing their focus on the project all together. This distracted focus helps enhance your creativity. The study’s authors explain that “getting into a relatively noisy environment may trigger the brain to think abstractly, and thus generate creative ideas.” . . .