Doodle Art
Focusing through art
Doodling as therapy
As a therapeutic device Doodling can be used as a stress relieving
technique. This is similar to other motor activities such as fidgeting
or pacing that are also used to alleviate mental stress. According to a
review of over 9,000 submitted doodles, nearly 2/3 of respondents
recalled doodling when in a "tense or restless state" as a means to
reduce those feelings.[11] Scientists believe that doodling's stress
relieving properties arise from the way that the act of doodling engages
with the brain's default mode network.[2] According to graphologist and
behavior specialist Ingrid Seger-Woznicki, "we [doodle] because we’re
problem solving on an unconscious level" and seeking to "create our life
without stressing about it".[12] Doodling is often incorporated into art
therapy, allowing its users to slow down, focus and de-stress.[13]
Doodling for memory
According to a study published in the scientific journal
Applied Cognitive Psychology, doodling can aid a person's
memory by expending just enough energy to keep one from daydreaming,
which demands a lot of the brain's processing power, as well as from not
paying attention. Thus, it acts as a mediator between the spectrum of
thinking too much or thinking too little and helps focus on the current
situation. The study was done by Professor Jackie Andrade, of the School
of Psychology at the University of Plymouth, who reported that doodlers
in her experiment recalled 7.5 pieces of information (out of 16 total)
on average, 29% more than the average of 5.8 recalled by the control
group made of non-doodlers.[9] Doodling has positive effects on human
comprehension as well. Creating visual depictions of information allows
for a deeper understanding of material being learned.[10] When doodling,
a person is engaging neurological pathways in ways that allow for
effective and efficient sifting and processing of information.[4] For
these reasons, doodling is used as an effective study tool and memory
device.
