Neuroplasticity: Definition, Examples, & Principles​

By Kelsey Schultz, Ph.D. Candidate
​Reviewed by Tchiki Davis, M.A., Ph.D.
If you love learning and developing as a person, thank neuroplasticity. Keep reading to learn about this essential brain function that gives life its flavor.
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Imagine a world in which we are unable to learn from our mistakes, we never take up a new hobby or learn a new skill, and we can’t learn to navigate a new city. This is a world without neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is an amazing brain function and one that we are critically dependent on in our daily lives. Let’s talk more about what neuroplasticity is and how it works.​
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What Is Neuroplasticity? (A Definition)​

Neuroplasticity is our brain’s ability to adapt in response to experience. In other words, it’s our ability to learn new things or develop new skills. As we move through life, we have to develop behaviors that suit our context and help us survive and sometimes thrive. The brain accomplishes this by creating new connections between neurons, thus altering the way different parts of the brain talk to each other, which ultimately supports the new behavior or skill (Kleim & Jones, 2008).​

Why Is Neuroplasticity Important?

Neuroplasticity might be one of the brain’s most important functions. If the neural circuitry that is created throughout our early development was fixed, we wouldn’t be able to adapt to new contexts or environments, the functional effects of brain damage would be permanent, and we wouldn’t be able to experience the joy of learning. We would be stuck as the person we were when our brains stopped developing. So essentially all humans would cognitively be 20-somethings forever.​

How Does Neuroplasticity Work?

There’s still much to be learned about neuroplasticity, but there are a few things that have been consistently observed in research experiments. Current research shows that neuroplasticity involves several types of changes that occur in the brain.​

One kind of change is in the actual structure of brain cells. For example, a neuroimaging study found structural changes in brain areas associated with learning and memory after a task that engaged learning and memory processes (Sagi et al., 2012).

Another kind of structural change observed in brain cells is something called dendritic growth. Dendrites are branch-like projections that extend from one cell and connect to another one to allow for communication between them. This communication comes in the form of a synapse, which is essentially just the flow of information from one neuron to another.

​Neurons can have multiple dendrites that branch out in all directions and synapse on many other neighboring cells. More dendrites mean a single neuron can talk to more neurons at one time. Dendritic growth is the growth and branching of a neuron’s dendrites which leads to changes in the way different parts of the brain are able to communicate with each other. These changes in communication can lead to changes in neuronal networks—or an assembly of neurons that work together to support some function. And it's these changes that we observe as neuroplasticity (Ploughman et al., 2015).

Examples of Neuroplasticity

We can find examples of neuroplasticity everywhere. We see it when we take up a new hobby, change a bad habit, or move to a new home. There are also many other examples of neuroplasticity that are quite remarkable.

One common example of neuroplasticity is recovering from a stroke. A stroke is an event in which a part of the brain isn’t receiving enough blood flow. This lack of blood and the oxygen it carries causes damage to the brain tissue which results in impairments in functions like movement and cognition.

After a stroke, however, it is possible for brain circuits to compensate for the damage and essentially reroute to other parts of the brain that are not damaged in order to perform the functions that were previously lost. This rehabilitative neuroplasticity requires a good deal of training and repetition (Murphy & Corbett, 2009). For example, people who have had a stroke often lose function in their hand (commonly their left hand). During their recovery, if they consistently try to use that hand, the brain will eventually figure out a way to make that happen.

​​Another extraordinary example of neuroplasticity can be found in a neuroimaging study that showed changes in the brains of people who are blind (Sadato et al., 1996). Typically, there is a specific region of your brain that is responsible for seeing. That is, visual information travels from our eyes and into this region (aptly named the visual cortex) where it is processed in a way that allows us to make sense of what we are experiencing. This study showed that in people who are blind, this region supports touch information, like what you would need to read Braille. In other words, this visual processing area isn’t useful for blind people, so their brains change their wiring to take over that area and use it for something that is actually helpful. Other studies have found this same phenomenon in the brains of people who are deaf (Finney et al., 2001).

Principles of Neuroplasticity

Researchers have identified 10 different principles of neuroplasticity (Kleim & Jones, 2008). These include:
​
  • Use It or Lose It
  • Use It and Improve It
  • Specificity
  • Repetition Matters
  • Intensity Matters
  • Time Matters
  • Salience Matters
  • Age Matters
  • Transference or Generalization
  • Interference
​
Let’s explore what each of these principles are.

Neuroplasticity Principle: Use It or Lose It

This is a phrase that you are likely already familiar with, but it is a good encapsulation of one aspect of neuroplasticity. As we saw in the examples of neuroplasticity in blind people and deaf people, the brain isn’t a fan of letting areas go unused. The use it or lose it principle refers to this same process. However, unlike in these examples, the neural networks that are not being used aren’t necessarily repurposed for something better. Luckily, even if we don’t use it and we subsequently lose it, we can get it back through dedicated training and consistency.​

Neuroplasticity Principle: Use It and Improve It

As described earlier, part of neuroplasticity is the growth and branching of dendrites that allows for more communication between neurons. One aspect of the use it and improve it principle is based on the changes in the dendrites of cells that improve communication between them. Another aspect of this principle is a strengthening of the existing connections between cells. These changes occur with repetition and consistency. Both of these effects improve the neural circuitry that supports whatever action you are performing. You can think of it like driving down a dirt road: The more times you drive on it, the deeper the grooves get.​

Neuroplasticity Principle: Specificity

The specificity principle basically means that you will only get better at something if you train specifically on that thing. For example, if I want to improve my aim when shooting a basketball, I have to specifically practice that motion. I can’t improve my aim in basketball by practicing throwing a baseball, even though both activities involve throwing. This would be a little like creating grooves in a dirt road that doesn’t lead to the location at which you are hoping to arrive.​

Neuroplasticity Principle: Repetition Matters

As stated earlier, neuroplasticity requires repetition. We can easily see this principle in our daily lives. We typically don’t perform a new action perfectly on the first try. Imagine learning to ride a bike or learning to swim. We had to repeat those actions over and over again before we were able to perform them with ease. This principle underlies the need for athletes to practice before a game or competition.​

Neuroplasticity Principle: Intensity Matters

The intensity principle can be thought of as the dosage required to achieve a result. This will likely depend heavily on what you are trying to do and may not necessarily apply to your goals. For example, let’s say you are trying to quit a bad habit. There’s no way for you to intensely not do something. But if you are learning to play piano, sitting down for five minutes and playing one of those songs you can play with two fingers will not improve your piano-playing ability. Sitting down for an hour and challenging yourself with complicated pieces, on the other hand, will improve your ability to play the piano.

Neuroplasticity Principle: Time Matters

​This principle is predominantly relevant for people who are recovering function after a brain injury. Immediately after the event, the brain is looking for new ways to wire itself, which makes training it to do the things you want it to do much easier. Without training in this critical window of time, you may develop other, less desirable compensatory mechanisms. For example, if someone has a stroke and loses their ability to use their left hand properly, it is important that they teach their brain how to use that hand by asking it to do so repeatedly. Otherwise, their brain may simply find other ways to perform daily activities that don’t involve using their left hand, such as using the right hand to do everything.

Neuroplasticity Principle: Salience Matters

​Kleim and Jones (2008) suggest that emotions can play an important role in neuroplasticity, especially in the context of recovery. The salience matters principle basically means that it is easier to learn something you like doing than something you hate doing. You may have experienced this if you’ve ever taken a class that bored you. The boring classwork can feel impossible to learn, but it feels easy to learn in a class that excites you.

​Neuroplasticity Principle: Age Matters

​This principle refers to the fact that our brains are much more plastic (or adaptable) when we are young than when we are old. Though an aging brain is still more than capable of learning new things, it just might not come as quickly or as easily as it would to a younger person.

​Neuroplasticity Principle: Transference or Generalization

​This principle is also more appropriately considered in the context of rehabilitation. It refers to the enhanced ability to acquire similar behaviors in response to the training of a different behavior. Preparing someone who is recovering from brain damage to live independently is an example of where this principle might be applied. For example, therapists might have their patient practice reaching out to grab an object during physical therapy, knowing that it will be important for their patient to pick things up when they are in a different environment.

​Neuroplasticity Principle: Interference

​Interference essentially refers to the development of bad habits that impede your ability to correctly perform similar behaviors. For example, as mentioned earlier, it is common for people who have lost some function in their left hand to simply use their right hand for everything. Creating a habit of using their right hand can make learning to use their left much more challenging.

​Neuroplasticity and Growth Mindset

​Growth mindset is the perspective that we do not exist at one fixed level of ability but are capable of making the changes we desire. It is probably easy to identify the relationship between neuroplasticity and growth mindset because neuroplasticity is the physiological and scientific foundation for the principles and practice of growth mindset. Growth mindset suggests that we can grow where we want to, and neuroplasticity is the way we make that happen.

​Neuroplasticity and Meditation

Meditation can be understood as a practice of mind and body integration through which we can improve our awareness and achieve greater clarity. There is a wealth of research demonstrating the positive effects meditation can have on our brains including relief from anxiety and depression (Breedvelt et al., 2019). Research has also shown that meditation can induce neuroplastic changes in the structure of some brain regions (Tang et al., 2012).

​Neuroplasticity and Music

​Neuroplasticity is one brain function we can all appreciate. It is the basis for so much of what makes life rich and enjoyable. Researchers are still discovering the mechanisms that underlie how it works, but it is clear that neuroplasticity plays a huge role in our lives. To learn more about neuroplasticity, check out this video:

Articles Related to Neuroplasticity

​Want to learn more? Check out these articles:​

Books Related to Neuroplasticity

If you’d like to keep learning more, here are a few books that you might be interested in.

Final Thoughts on Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity is one brain function we can all appreciate. It is the basis for so much of what makes life rich and enjoyable. Researchers are still discovering the mechanisms that underlie how it works, but it is clear that neuroplasticity plays a huge role in our lives. To learn more about neuroplasticity, check out this video:​

Video: Neuroplasticity

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