Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms
People may experience an aha moment, when suddenly realizing a solution of a puzzling problem. This experience is called insight problem solving. Several findings suggest that catecholamine-related genes may contribute to insight problem solving, among which the catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) g...
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doaj-ad5d00f5438947a0b53a0b909a327bf22020-11-24T22:54:34ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782015-10-01610.3389/fpsyg.2015.01569160897Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphismsWeili eJiang0Siyuan eShang1Yanjie eSu2Peking UniversityPeking UniversityPeking UniversityPeople may experience an aha moment, when suddenly realizing a solution of a puzzling problem. This experience is called insight problem solving. Several findings suggest that catecholamine-related genes may contribute to insight problem solving, among which the catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene is the most promising candidate. The current study examined 753 healthy individuals to determine the associations between 7 candidate single nucleotide polymorphisms on the COMT gene and insight problem-solving performance, while considering gender differences. The results showed that individuals carrying A allele of rs4680 or T allele of rs4633 scored significantly higher on insight problem-solving tasks, and the COMT gene rs5993883 combined with gender interacted with correct solutions of insight problems, specifically showing that this gene only influenced insight problem-solving performance in males. This study presents the first investigation of the genetic impact on insight problem solving and provides evidence that highlights the role that the COMT gene plays in insight problem solving.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01569/fullCatecholaminescreativitygender differencesinsight problem solvingCOMT gene |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Weili eJiang Siyuan eShang Yanjie eSu |
spellingShingle |
Weili eJiang Siyuan eShang Yanjie eSu Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms Frontiers in Psychology Catecholamines creativity gender differences insight problem solving COMT gene |
author_facet |
Weili eJiang Siyuan eShang Yanjie eSu |
author_sort |
Weili eJiang |
title |
Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms |
title_short |
Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms |
title_full |
Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms |
title_fullStr |
Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms |
title_full_unstemmed |
Genetic influences on insight problem solving: The role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphisms |
title_sort |
genetic influences on insight problem solving: the role of catechol-o-methyltransferase (comt) gene polymorphisms |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Psychology |
issn |
1664-1078 |
publishDate |
2015-10-01 |
description |
People may experience an aha moment, when suddenly realizing a solution of a puzzling problem. This experience is called insight problem solving. Several findings suggest that catecholamine-related genes may contribute to insight problem solving, among which the catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene is the most promising candidate. The current study examined 753 healthy individuals to determine the associations between 7 candidate single nucleotide polymorphisms on the COMT gene and insight problem-solving performance, while considering gender differences. The results showed that individuals carrying A allele of rs4680 or T allele of rs4633 scored significantly higher on insight problem-solving tasks, and the COMT gene rs5993883 combined with gender interacted with correct solutions of insight problems, specifically showing that this gene only influenced insight problem-solving performance in males. This study presents the first investigation of the genetic impact on insight problem solving and provides evidence that highlights the role that the COMT gene plays in insight problem solving. |
topic |
Catecholamines creativity gender differences insight problem solving COMT gene |
url |
http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01569/full |
work_keys_str_mv |
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