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2024 study -

According to a study released in 2024, around three percent of the world's population has a condition called hyperphantasia.

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2024 study -

Those with hyperphantasia have an intensely vivid imagination that sets them apart from people with a normal level of imaginary capacity.

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Visual memory -

Are there advantages to having a keen visual mind? Using neuroscience, we can examine the benefits and drawbacks of being so readily able to stir up images.

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Aphantasia -

Hyperphantasia lies at the opposite end of the mental visual spectrum to aphantasia, a condition where people have an absence of mental visualization altogether.

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Hyperphantasia -

In contrast, those with hyperphantasia can imagine a scenario so completely that it can blur the lines between perception and what's being envisioned.

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A rich inner world -

Being able to picture objects and events so accurately gives people with hyperphantasia an incredibly rich inner world.

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Not limited to visuals -

A person with hyperphantasia can describe visual details including color, texture, and movement, but for some, the ability stretches beyond visuals.

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Not limited to visuals -

In fact, their other senses can also become engaged, enabling them to summon an active imagining of certain smells, tastes, or feelings of touch.

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High creativity -

Many people with hyperphantasia have high creativity, as they use art to channel their senses and their rich experience of life.

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High creativity -

In a 2021 study published in Oxford Academic, it was found that participants with hyperphantasia were more often employed in "creative" professions.

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Neural connections -

In the same study, resting-state fMRIs revealed stronger connectivity between prefrontal cortices and the visual network among hyperphantasic than aphantasic participants.

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Causes -

In other words, the parts of the brain that handle sensory information and imagination experienced heightened activity in people with hyperphantasia.

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Neuroimaging studies -

The prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain involved in decision-making and concentration, also shows increased activity in studies.

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Neuroimaging studies -

It's believed that the ability to manipulate images in the mind's eye comes from this connectivity between separate parts of the brain in people with hyperphantasia.

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Neural pathways -

It seems as though the pathways that process memory and visual imagery are better at communicating in people with hyperphantasia than, for instance, someone with aphantasia who does not see images in their mind's eye.

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Increased neural activity -

The increased neural activity associated with hyperphantasia is thought to allow people to recall and combine images more easily.

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Happy chemicals -

The brain's "happy" chemicals, dopamine and norepinephrine, might also have something to do with helping the areas of the brain in people with hyperphantasia work better.

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Hereditary? -

As aphantasia is believed to run in families, there could similarly be a genetic component to imagery vividness that makes hyperphantasia something hereditary.

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The breakfast question -

Since the 1800s, scientists have been curious about visual imagination. The earliest tests involved describing what you had for breakfast.

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Francis Galton (1822-1911) -

Back then, it was the eugenicist Francis Galton who developed a scale that ranged from lacking in imagination (aphantasia) to highly accurate visualizations (hyperphantasia).

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Questionnaires and tests -

In the meantime, much has changed in how hyperphantasia is tested. Visualization tasks and self-report questionnaires have been developed to determine if you have it.

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MRIs and brain scans -

Advances in technology mean that researchers can make use of brain imaging techniques, using MRI and PET scans to observe neural connectivity in those with hyperphantasia and better understand it.

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Mental rotation tasks -

Researchers and clinicians also use mental rotation tasks, which people with hyperphantasia excel in, to ascertain if someone has it.

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Mental rotation tasks -

These tasks involve the person imagining rotating images in the mind and asking them if they match a certain image.

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Drawing -

Researchers might also ask a participant to draw or describe scenes as part of the rotating image test, in order to compare them with the original image.

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Hyperphantasia vs. eidetic memory -

A photorealistic, or eidetic memory, is different from hyperphantasia. Eidetic memory involves retrieving information from your memory.

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Hyperphantasia vs. eidetic memory -

In contrast, hyperphantasia involves generating or imagining vivid images. The images are coming from the imagination. 

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Nothing to worry about -

Far from being something to worry about, hyperphantasia's imaginative thinking can be a real asset in many careers such as in design, science, and literature. 

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Nothing to worry about -

Focus, however, might sometimes be an issue for people with hyperphantasia. It's important for people who have it to practice grounding so they can remain rooted in reality, while using their vivid imagination to come up with visionary ideas and solutions.

Sources: (Well + Good) (The Guardian)

See also: Visual agnosia: when your brain doesn't process what you see

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