How does happiness affect problem-solving and creative thinking?

According to Don Norman, when people are happy, their brains process information differently, making them more creative problem solvers. Psychologist Alice Ison demonstrated this in an experiment where students who received candy (making them slightly happier) were able to solve a challenging string-tying problem, while anxious students could not. Happiness triggers dopamine release in the prefrontal lobes, promoting breadth-first processing and out-of-the-box thinking. This enables more creative solutions and lateral thinking - the principle behind brainstorming sessions. Meanwhile, anxiety and fear cause depth-first processing, which helps with focus and meeting deadlines but limits creative thinking. This explains why pleasant experiences in design not only feel better but actually function better.