Intelligence and neural efficiency

Neubauer, Aljoscha C.; Fink, Andreas

doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2009.04.001

Cited by 878Cognitive Abilities and TestingNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesCreativity in Education and Neuroscience

Intelligence and neural efficiency

Neubauer, Aljoscha C., Fink, Andreas·2009·Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

DOI 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2009.04.001

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Abstract

We review research on the neural efficiency hypothesis of intelligence, stating that brighter individuals display lower (more efficient) brain activation while performing cognitive tasks [Haier, R.J., Siegel, B.V., Nuechterlein, K.H., Hazlett, E., Wu, J.C., Paek, J., Browning, H.L., Buchsbaum, M.S., 1988. Cortical glucose metabolic rate correlates of abstract reasoning and attention studied with positron emission tomography. Intelligence 12, 199-217]. While most early studies confirmed this hypothesis later research has revealed contradictory evidence or has identified some moderating variables like sex, task type, task complexity or brain area. Neuroscientific training studies suggest that neural efficiency also seems to be a function of the amount and quality of learning. From integrating this evidence we conclude that neural efficiency might arise when individuals are confronted with tasks of (subjectively) low to moderate task difficulty and it is mainly observable for frontal brain areas. This is true for easier novel cognitive tasks or after sufficient practice allowing participants to develop appropriate (efficient) strategies to deal with the task. In very complex tasks more able individuals seem to invest more cortical resources resulting in positive correlations between brain usage and cognitive ability. Based on the reviewed evidence we propose future empirical approaches in this field.

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Neubauer, A. C., & Fink, A. (2008) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2008.10.008 · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Self-citation
Reasoning and working memory: common and distinct neuronal processes
Ruff, C. C., Knauff, M., Fangmeier, T., & Spreer, J. (2003) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/s0028-3932(03)00016-2 · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Spatiotemporal organization of brain dynamics and intelligence: an EEG study in adolescents
Anokhin, A. P., Lutzenberger, W., & Birbaumer, N. (1999) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(99)00064-1 · Cited by 126 · see citing works
Intelligence and individual differences in becoming neurally efficient
Neubauer, A. C., Grabner, R. H., Freudenthaler, H. H., Beckmann, J. F., & Guthke, J. (2004) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2003.11.005 · Cited by 123 · see citing works
Self-citation
Evoked potentials and intelligence
Chalke, F. C. R., & Ertl, J. P. (1965) · Life Sciences · doi:10.1016/0024-3205(65)90083-4 · Cited by 122 · see citing works
EEG activity during the performance of complex mental problems
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2000) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(99)00113-0 · Cited by 121 · see citing works
Fluid intelligence and neural efficiency: effects of task complexity and sex
Neubauer, A. C., & Fink, A. (2002) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(02)00285-4 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Self-citation
Individual differences in general intelligence correlate with brain function during nonreasoning tasks
Haier, R. J., White, N. S., & Alkire, M. T. (2003) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/s0160-2896(03)00025-4 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Theta synchronization in the human EEG and episodic retrieval
Doppelmayr, M., Klimesch, W., Schwaiger, J., Auinger, P., & Winkler, T. (1998) · Neuroscience Letters · doi:10.1016/s0304-3940(98)00805-2 · Cited by 118 · see citing works
Dissociating Age-related Changes in Cognitive Strategy and Neural Efficiency Using Event- related fMRI
Rypma, B., BERGER, J., Genova, H. M., Rebbechi, D., & D’Esposito, M. (2005) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/s0010-9452(08)70198-9 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
Verbal Fluency and Positron Emission Tomographic Mapping of Regional Cerebral Glucose Metabolism
Boivin, M. J., Giordani, B., Berent, S., Amato, D. A., Lehtinen, S., Koeppe, R. A., Buchtel, H. A., Foster, N. L., & Kuhl, D. E. (1992) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/s0010-9452(13)80051-2 · Cited by 115 · see citing works
Different mental imagery abilities result in different regional cerebral blood flow activation patterns during cognitive tasks
Charlot, V., Tzourio‐Mazoyer, N., Zilbovicius, M., Mazoyer, B. M., & Denis, M. (1992) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/0028-3932(92)90059-u · Cited by 109 · see citing works
Individual Differences in Amygdala Activity Predict Response Speed during Working Memory
Schaefer, A., Braver, T. S., Reynolds, J. R., Burgess, G. C., Yarkoni, T., & Gray, J. R. (2006) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.2567-06.2006 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Increased Neural Efficiency with Repeated Performance of a Working Memory Task is Information-type Dependent
Sayala, S., Sala, J. B., & Courtney, S. M. (2005) · Cerebral Cortex · doi:10.1093/cercor/bhj007 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Differences in EEG alpha activity related to giftedness
Jaušovec, N. (1996) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/s0160-2896(96)90001-x · Cited by 101 · see citing works
I. PET Studies of Memory: Novel and Practiced Free Recall of Complex Narratives
Andreasen, N. C., OʼLeary, D. S., Arndt, S. V., Cizadlo, T., Rezai, K., Watkins, G. L., Ponto, L. L. B., & Hichwa, R. D. (1995) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1006/nimg.1995.1036 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
High-Frequency Components in the Alpha Band and Memory Performance
Vogt, F., Klimesch, W., & Doppelmayr, M. M. (1998) · Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology · doi:10.1097/00004691-199803000-00011 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
Sex and performance level effects on brain activation during a verbal fluency task: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study
Gauthier, C. T., Duyme, M., Zanca, M., & Capron, C. (2008) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2007.09.006 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
Long-term stability and consistency of EEG event-related (de-)synchronization across different cognitive tasks
Neuper, C., Grabner, R. H., Fink, A., & Neubauer, A. C. (2005) · Clinical Neurophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.clinph.2005.03.013 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
Self-citation
Neurophysiological factors in human information processing capacity
Ramsey, N. F. (2003) · Brain · doi:10.1093/brain/awh060 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
Sex differences and lateralization in temporal lobe glucose metabolism during mathematical reasoning
Haier, R. J., & Benbow, C. P. (1995) · Developmental Neuropsychology · doi:10.1080/87565649509540629 · Cited by 92 · see citing works
Differences in induced gamma and upper alpha oscillations in the human brain related to verbal/performance and emotional intelligence
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2005) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2004.12.005 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
EEG coherence at rest and during a visual task in two groups of children
Gasser, T., Jennen-Steinmetz, C., & Verleger, R. (1987) · Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology · doi:10.1016/0013-4694(87)90038-1 · Cited by 87 · see citing works
Multimedia: Differences in cognitive processes observed with EEG
Gerě, I., & Jaušcvec, N. (1999) · Educational Technology Research and Development · doi:10.1007/bf02299630 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
Evaluation of a “mental effort” hypothesis for correlations between cortical metabolism and intelligence
Larson, G. E., Haier, R. J., LaCasse, L., & Hazen, K. (1995) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/0160-2896(95)90017-9 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Age-Related Differences in Activation-Performance Relations in Delayed-Response Tasks: a Multiple Component Analysis
Rypma, B., Eldreth, D. A., & Rebbechi, D. (2007) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/s0010-9452(08)70446-5 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Differences in induced brain activity during the performance of learning and working-memory tasks related to intelligence
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2004) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/s0278-2626(03)00263-x · Cited by 75 · see citing works
Cortical volume and speed-of-processing are complementary in prediction of performance intelligence
Walhovd, K. B., Fjell, A. M., Reinvang, I., Lundervold, A., Fischl, B. R., Salat, D. H., Quinn, B. T., Makris, N., & Dale, A. M. (2004) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2004.08.006 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
When intelligence loses its impact: neural efficiency during reasoning in a familiar area
Grabner, R. H., Stern, E., & Neubauer, A. C. (2003) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(03)00095-3 · Cited by 68 · see citing works
Self-citation
Hemispheric EEG Asymmetries Related to Cognitive Functioning in Children11This research was supported by USDA grant HRD–0200 and NIH/MBRS Grant RR 08079–09 to R. W. Thatcher, principal investigator.
Thatcher, R. W., McAlaster, R., Lester, M. L., Horst, R. L., & CANTOR, D. S. (1983) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-550680-9.50013-3 · Cited by 66 · see citing works
Cortical activity of good and poor spatial test performers during spatial and verbal processing studied with Slow Potential Topography
Vitouch, O., Bauer, H., Gittler, G., Leodolter, M., & Leodolter, U. (1997) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(97)00060-3 · Cited by 65 · see citing works
Are gifted individuals less chaotic thinkers?
Jaušovec, N. (1998) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(98)00039-7 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Brain size and cerebral glucose metabolic rate in nonspecific mental retardation and down syndrome
Haier, R. J., Chueh, D., Touchette, P. E., Lott, I. T., Buchsbaum, M. S., MacMillan, D. L., Sandman, C. A., LaCasse, L., & Sosa, E. (1995) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/0160-2896(95)90032-2 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
126 Psychometric intelligence and event-related desynchronisation during performance of a letter matching task
Neubauer, A. C., Sange, G., & Pfurtscheller, G. (1998) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(98)90126-x · Cited by 57 · see citing works
Self-citation
Differences in EEG current density related to intelligence
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2001) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/s0926-6410(01)00029-5 · Cited by 55 · see citing works
Flexible cognitive control: Effects of individual differences and brief practice on a complex cognitive task
Kelly, C. A. M., Hester, R., Foxe, J. J., Shpaner, M., & Garavan, H. (2006) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2006.01.008 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
The chronometry of mental ability: An event-related potential analysis of an auditory oddball discrimination task
Beauchamp, C. M., & Stelmack, R. M. (2006) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2006.03.007 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Effects of practice on executive control investigated with fMRI
Weissman, D. H., Woldorff, M. G., Hazlett, C. J., & Mangun, G. R. (2002) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/s0926-6410(02)00215-x · Cited by 51 · see citing works
The Effect of Pacing of Experimental Stimuli on Observed Functional MRI Activity
D’Esposito, M., Zarahn, E., Aguirre, G. K., Shin, R. K., Auerbach, P., & Detre, J. A. (1997) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1006/nimg.1997.0281 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Manipulation of frontal brain asymmetry by cognitive tasks
Papousek, I., & Schulter, G. (2003) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/s0278-2626(03)00258-6 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
Differences in the ability to process a visuo-spatial task are reflected in event-related slow cortical potentials of human subjects
Lamm, C., Bauer, H., Vitouch, O., & Gstättner, R. (1999) · Neuroscience Letters · doi:10.1016/s0304-3940(99)00441-3 · Cited by 46 · see citing works
Speed of information processing in the hick paradigm and response latencies in a psychometric intelligence test
Neubauer, A. C. (1990) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/0191-8869(90)90007-e · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Self-citation
Intelligence and P3 components of the event-related potential elicited during an auditory discrimination task with masking
Pascalis, V. D., Varriale, V., & Matteoli, A. (2007) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2007.01.002 · Cited by 43 · see citing works
Spatiotemporal brain activity related to intelligence: a low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography study
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2003) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/s0926-6410(02)00282-3 · Cited by 43 · see citing works
Individual differences in brain activity during visuo-spatial processing assessed by slow cortical potentials and LORETA
Lamm, C., Fischmeister, F. P. S., & Bauer, H. (2005) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.cogbrainres.2005.09.025 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Spatial rotation and recognizing emotions: Gender related differences in brain activity
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2007) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2007.09.002 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Characteristic functional networks in high- versus low-proficiency second language speakers detected also during native language processing: An explorative EEG coherence study in 6 frequency bands
Reiterer, S., Hemmelmann, C., Rappelsberger, P., & Berger, M. L. (2005) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.cogbrainres.2005.08.010 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Spatial working memory and intelligence
Rooy, C. V., Stough, C. K. K., Pipingas, A., Hocking, C., & Silberstein, R. B. (2001) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/s0160-2896(00)00039-8 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Cortical volume and developmental instability are independent predictors of general intellectual ability
Thoma, R. J., Yeo, R., Gangestad, S. W., Halgren, E., Sanchez, N. M., & Lewine, J. D. (2004) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2004.08.004 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
Rethinking neural efficiency: Effects of controlling for strategy use.
Toffanin, P., Johnson, A., de Jong, R., & Martens, S. (2007) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037/0735-7044.121.5.854 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Intelligence and the tuning-in of brain networks
Stankov, L., Danthiir, V., Williams, L. M., Pallier, G., Roberts, R. D., & Gordon, E. (2006) · Learning and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2004.12.003 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Dynamic sculpting of brain functional connectivity and mental rotation aptitude
Silberstein, R. B. (2006) · Progress in brain research · doi:10.1016/s0079-6123(06)59005-3 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Individual differences in the functional neuroanatomy of verbal discrimination learning revealed by positron emission tomography
Habib, R., McIntosh, A. R., & Tulving, E. (2000) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/s0001-6918(00)00058-5 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Restriction of task processing time affects cortical activity during processing of a cognitive task: an event-related slow cortical potential study
Lamm, C., Bauer, H., Vitouch, O., Durec, S., Gronister, R., & Gstättner, R. (2001) · Cognitive Brain Research · doi:10.1016/s0926-6410(00)00048-3 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Not so F.A.S.T., Dr. Vickers!
Deary, I. J., & Caryl, P. G. (1997) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/s0160-2896(97)90056-8 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
High-resolution intersubject averaging and a coordinate system for the cortical surface
Fischl, B., Sereno, M. I., Tootell, R. B. H., & Dale, A. M. (1999) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/(sici)1097-0193(1999)8:4

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Sorted by citations

Exploring the brain network: A review on resting-state fMRI functional connectivity
van den Heuvel, M. P., & Hulshoff Pol, H. E. (2010) · European Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.euroneuro.2010.03.008 · Cited by 3,326 · see citing works
“Indeed, supporting an information integration efficiency hypothesis of intelligence (Jung and Haier, 2007; Neubauer and Fink, 2009; van den Heuvel et al., 2009), EEG findings have indicated that higher educated participants have on average a shorter path length than lower educated subjects…”
Background
The neuroscience of human intelligence differences
Deary, I. J., Penke, L., & Johnson, W. (2010) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn2793 · Cited by 1,038 · see citing works
How Does it STAC Up? Revisiting the Scaffolding Theory of Aging and Cognition
Reuter‐Lorenz, P. A., & Park, D. C. (2014) · Neuropsychology Review · doi:10.1007/s11065-014-9270-9 · Cited by 955 · see citing works
“Compensation”
Background
Efficiency, capacity, compensation, maintenance, plasticity: emerging concepts in cognitive reserve
Barulli, D., & Stern, Y. (2013) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.tics.2013.08.012 · Cited by 924 · see citing works
Contemplating Mindfulness at Work: An Integrative Review
Good, D. J., Lyddy, C. J., Glomb, T. M., Bono, J. E., Brown, K. W., Duffy, M. K., Baer, R. A., Brewer, J. A., & Lazar, S. W. (2016) · Journal of Management · doi:10.1177/0149206315617003 · Cited by 1,043 · see citing works
“Considered as a whole, these results suggest that mindfulness increases cognitive capacity and flexibility, at least in part via its effects on attention.”
Background
Genome-wide association studies establish that human intelligence is highly heritable and polygenic
Davies, G., Tenesa, A., Payton, A., Yang, J., Harris, S. E., Liewald, D., Ke, X., Le Hellard, S., Christoforou, A., Luciano, M., et al. (2011) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/mp.2011.85 · Cited by 608 · see citing works
EEG alpha power and creative ideation
Fink, A., & Benedek, M. (2012) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.12.002 · Cited by 567 · see citing works
Self-citation
Intelligence and Personality as Predictors of Illness and Death
Deary, I. J., Weiß, A., & Batty, G. D. (2010) · Gothic.net · doi:10.1177/1529100610387081 · Cited by 447 · see citing works
Cognitive Load During Speech Perception in Noise: The Influence of Age, Hearing Loss, and Cognition on the Pupil Response
Zekveld, A., Kramer, S., & Festen, J. (2011) · Ear and Hearing · doi:10.1097/aud.0b013e31820512bb · Cited by 403 · see citing works
“Possibly, individuals with a good TRT and large word vocabulary may more often feel that they are able to comprehend or correctly guess the content of low intelligible sentences and may be more prepared to invest processing capacity than individuals with lower ability (c.f., Neubauer & Fink 2009).”
BackgroundMethodInfluential
Intelligence
Deary, I. J. (2012) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev-psych-120710-100353 · Cited by 467 · see citing works
Dissecting the social brain: introducing the EmpaToM to reveal distinct neural networks and brain-behavior relations for empathy and theory of mind
Kanske, P., Böckler, A., Trautwein, F.-M., & Singer, T. (2015) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.07.082 · Cited by 421 · see citing works
“…to the neural efficiency hypothesis, claiming that expertise in a specific task comes with reduced activation of the underlying neural network (Neubauer and Fink, 2009) and behavioral impairments relate to activation increase (Kanske et al., 2013a; Wessa et al., 2013), our results clearly…”
Mental workload and neural efficiency quantified in the prefrontal cortex using fNIRS
Causse, M., Chua, Z. K., Peysakhovich, V., del Campo, N., & Matton, N. (2017) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-017-05378-x · Cited by 402 · see citing works
Changes in Thickness and Surface Area of the Human Cortex and Their Relationship with Intelligence
Schnack, H. G., van Haren, N. E. M., Brouwer, R. M., Evans, A. C., Durston, S., Boomsma, D. I., Kahn, R. S., & Pol, H. E. H. (2014) · Cerebral Cortex · doi:10.1093/cercor/bht357 · Cited by 390 · see citing works
Neuroanatomy of creativity
Jung, R. E., Segall, J. M., Bockholt, H. J., Flores, R. A., Smith, S. M., Chavez, R. S., & Haier, R. J. (2009) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.20874 · Cited by 344 · see citing works
“…correlations are suggestive of neural or network efficiency and have also been reported in neuroimaging studies of intelligence (Haier et al., 1988, 1992; Neubauer et al., 2004), although these efficiencies are now hypothesized to exist mainly for the frontal lobes (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Result
Meta-analysis of associations between human brain volume and intelligence differences: How strong are they and what do they mean?
Pietschnig, J., Penke, L., Wicherts, J. M., Zeiler, M., & Voracek, M. (2015) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.09.017 · Cited by 316 · see citing works
“…in intelligence beyond and independent of mere brain size, including functional parieto-frontal neuronal networks (Langeslag et al., 2013; Vakhtin et al., 2014), neuronal efficiency (Neubauer and Fink, 2009), and white matter integrity (Penke et al., 2012; Valdes Hernandez et al., 2013).”
A distributed brain network predicts general intelligence from resting-state human neuroimaging data
Dubois, J., Galdi, P., Paul, L. K., & Adolphs, R. (2018) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rstb.2017.0284 · Cited by 318 · see citing works
“As we know that task functional MRI [31,34] and structural MRI data (brain size [44], as well as morphometric features [63]) also hold information that is predictive of cognitive ability, a natural question is whether combining functional and structural data will allow us to account for more variance in the general in…”
BackgroundResultInfluential
Brain white matter tract integrity as a neural foundation for general intelligence
Penke, L., Maniega, S. M., Bastin, M. E., Hernández, M. C. V., Murray, C. L., Royle, N. A., Starr, J. M., Wardlaw, J. M., & Deary, I. J. (2012) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/mp.2012.66 · Cited by 303 · see citing works
Where smart brains are different: A quantitative meta-analysis of functional and structural brain imaging studies on intelligence
Basten, U., Hilger, K., & Fiebach, C. J. (2015) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2015.04.009 · Cited by 305 · see citing works
Functional brain network efficiency predicts intelligence
Langer, N., Pedroni, A., Gianotti, L. R. R., Hänggi, J., Knoch, D., & Jäncke, L. (2011) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.21297 · Cited by 282 · see citing works
Sleep apnoea and the brain: a complex relationship
Rosenzweig, I., Glasser, M., Polšek, D., Leschziner, G. D., Williams, S., & Morrell, M. J. (2015) · The Lancet Respiratory Medicine · doi:10.1016/s2213-2600(15)00090-9 · Cited by 278 · see citing works
EEG alpha synchronization is related to top-down processing in convergent and divergent thinking
Benedek, M., Bergner, S., Könen, T., Fink, A., & Neubauer, A. C. (2011) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.09.004 · Cited by 297 · see citing works
Self-citation
The neuroscience of musical improvisation
Beaty, R. E. (2015) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.01.004 · Cited by 261 · see citing works
“Another possibility is that decreased activation of prefrontal regions reflects greater neural efficiency in experts (cf. Grabner et al., 2006; Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Background
<scp>EEG</scp> power spectral measures of cognitive workload: A meta‐analysis
Chikhi, S., Matton, N., & Blanchet, S. (2022) · Psychophysiology · doi:10.1111/psyp.14009 · Cited by 258 · see citing works
Higher Intelligence Is Associated with Less Task-Related Brain Network Reconfiguration
Schultz, D. H., & Cole, M. W. (2016) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.0358-16.2016 · Cited by 268 · see citing works
Amygdala, Hippocampus, and Ventral Medial Prefrontal Cortex Volumes Differ in Maltreated Youth with and without Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Morey, R. A., Haswell, C. C., Hooper, S. R., & De Bellis, M. D. (2016) · Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1038/npp.2015.205 · Cited by 237 · see citing works
Individual alpha peak frequency is related to latent factors of general cognitive abilities
Grandy, T. H., Werkle‐Bergner, M., Chicherio, C., Lövdén, M., Schmiedek, F., & Lindenberger, U. (2013) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.04.059 · Cited by 226 · see citing works
“From this perspective, individual differences in intelligence also depend on differences in the efficiency of communication between widely distributed brain regions (cf. Anokhin et al., 1999; Jausovec and Jausovec, 2000; Lee et al., 2012; Neubauer and Fink, 2009a,b; Thatcher et al., 2005).”
Continuity of genetic and environmental influences on cognition across the life span: A meta-analysis of longitudinal twin and adoption studies.
Tucker–Drob, E. M., & Briley, D. A. (2014) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/a0035893 · Cited by 222 · see citing works
Neuronal effects following working memory training.
Buschkuehl, M., Jaeggi, S. M., & Jonides, J. (2012) · Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2011.10.001 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Classification of EEG Signals Based on Pattern Recognition Approach
Amin, H. U., Mumtaz, W., Subhani, A. R., Saad, M. N. M., & Malik, A. S. (2017) · Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fncom.2017.00103 · Cited by 210 · see citing works
“Thepresent study utilized “Raven’s Advance Progressive Metric” (RAPM)—commonly used to measure inter-individual diﬀerences in cognitive performance—as its standard psychometric cognitive task to stimulate EEG data (Raven, 2000; Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Method
The origins of originality: The neural bases of creative thinking and originality
Shamay‐Tsoory, S., Adler, N., Aharon‐Peretz, J., Perry, D., & Mayseless, N. (2010) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2010.11.020 · Cited by 208 · see citing works
The Neuroscience of Intelligence
Haier, R. J. (2016) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781316105771 · Cited by 207 · see citing works
Trait Anxiety Modulates the Neural Efficiency of Inhibitory Control
Basten, U., Stelzel, C., & Fiebach, C. J. (2011) · Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1162/jocn_a_00003 · Cited by 190 · see citing works
“In a second model, we additionally included intelligence (APM) as a second covariate of no interest to account for potential effects of intellectual ability on neural effort, as general cognitive ability has been linked to processing efficiency as well (Neubauer & Fink, 2009a).”
BackgroundMethodInfluential
White Matter Integrity, Creativity, and Psychopathology: Disentangling Constructs with Diffusion Tensor Imaging
Jung, R. E., Grazioplene, R. G., Caprihan, A., Chavez, R. S., & Haier, R. J. (2010) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009818 · Cited by 187 · see citing works
The effects of working memory training on functional brain network efficiency
Langer, N., von Bastian, C. C., Wirz, H., Oberauer, K., & Jäncke, L. (2013) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2013.01.008 · Cited by 175 · see citing works
“This fronto-parietal dissociation is in good agreement with neural-efficiency theory, which postulates that better-performing subjects need less neural resources primarily in the frontal brain regions to solve a cognitive task (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Result
Efficiency of weak brain connections support general cognitive functioning
Santarnecchi, E., Galli, G., Polizzotto, N. R., Rossi, A., & Rossi, S. (2014) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.22495 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
“The theoretical definition of intelligence and the explanation of its neurobiological basis is one of the most intriguing, yet controversial issues in modern psychology and neuroscience [Colom et al., 2010; da Rocha, et al., 2011; Deary et al., 2010; Neubauer and Fink, 2009].”
Background
Intellectual enrichment is linked to cerebral efficiency in multiple sclerosis: functional magnetic resonance imaging evidence for cognitive reserve
Sumowski, J. F., Wylie, G. R., DeLuca, J., & Chiaravalloti, N. D. (2009) · Brain · doi:10.1093/brain/awp307 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
“early electrophysiological data linking intelligence and cerebral efficiency in adults, subsequent fMRI research has not supported the notion that intelligent healthy persons put forth less effort to perform cognitive tasks (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Background
Diffusion markers of dendritic density and arborization in gray matter predict differences in intelligence
Genç, E., Fraenz, C., Schlüter, C., Friedrich, P., Hossiep, R., Voelkle, M. C., Ling, J. M., Güntürkün, O., & Jung, R. E. (2018) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-018-04268-8 · Cited by 167 · see citing works
A Strong Interactive Link between Sensory Discriminations and Intelligence
Melnick, M. D., Harrison, B. R., Park, S., Bennetto, L., & Tadin, D. (2013) · Current Biology · doi:10.1016/j.cub.2013.04.053 · Cited by 159 · see citing works
Neural Efficiency in Athletes: A Systematic Review
Li, L., & Smith, D. M. (2021) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2021.698555 · Cited by 155 · see citing works
“However, in highly complex tasks, both experts and novices seem to be able to stimulate more cortical resources, thus from the perspective of proﬁciency in brain function, there is a positive correlation between brain use and cognitive ability (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Influential
Regional gray matter density associated with emotional intelligence: Evidence from voxel‐based morphometry
Takeuchi, H., Taki, Y., Sassa, Y., Hashizume, H., Sekiguchi, A., Fukushima, A., & Kawashima, R. (2010) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.21122 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Long-Term Changes in Neurocognition and Behavior Following Treatment of Sleep Disordered Breathing in School-Aged Children
Biggs, S. N., Vlahandonis, A., Anderson, V. A., Bourke, R., Nixon, G. M., Davey, M. J., & Horne, R. S. C. (2014) · SLEEP · doi:10.5665/sleep.3312 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Separating vascular and neuronal effects of age on fMRI BOLD signals
Tsvetanov, K. A., Henson, R. N., & Rowe, J. B. (2020) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rstb.2019.0631 · Cited by 127 · see citing works
“decoupling of CBF and CMRO2, implicating neurovascular impairment as an underlying factor of neural efficiency (Neubauer and Fink, 2009; Rypma et al., 2007, 2005).”
Background
Two- vs. three-dimensional presentation of mental rotation tasks: Sex differences and effects of training on performance and brain activation
Neubauer, A. C., Bergner, S., & Schatz, M. (2010) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2010.06.001 · Cited by 128 · see citing works
Self-citation
“Neural Efficiency” of Athletes’ Brain during Visuo-Spatial Task: An fMRI Study on Table Tennis Players
Guo, Z., Li, A.-M., & Yu, L. (2017) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2017.00072 · Cited by 126 · see citing works
“It appears that the involvement of the executive functions associated with frontal pathways decreases while the role of specialized posterior brain regions becomes more important when individuals are sufficiently trained in a cognitive task (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Background
Working memory training: Improving intelligence – Changing brain activity
Jaušovec, N., & Jaušovec, K. (2012) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2012.02.007 · Cited by 142 · see citing works
“A further finding was also that neural efficiency seems to be corroborated mostly when participants work on tasks of low to medium difficulty or complexity (Neubauer & Fink, 2009).”
Environmental Enrichment as a Positive Behavioral Intervention Across the Lifespan
Sampedro‐Piquero, P., & Begega, A. (2016) · Current Neuropharmacology · doi:10.2174/1570159x14666160325115909 · Cited by 122 · see citing works
“Finally, older people with higher reserve also show a higher efficiency, so they use fewer neural resources to execute the task well [13, 17].”
Conceptions of Efficiency: Applications in Learning and Problem Solving
Hoffman, B. H., & Schraw, G. J. (2010) · Educational Psychologist · doi:10.1080/00461520903213618 · Cited by 118 · see citing works
“These studies suggest the existence of a general efficiency component during information processing (Grabner, Neubauer, & Stern, 2006; Neubauer & Fink, 2009).”
Background
A meta-analysis of changes in brain activity in clinical depression
Palmer, S. M., Crewther, S. G., Carey, L. M., & The START Project Team (2015) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2014.01045 · Cited by 116 · see citing works
Enhancing dual-task performance with verbal and spatial working memory training: Continuous monitoring of cerebral hemodynamics with NIRS
McKendrick, R. D., Ayaz, H., Olmstead, R., & Parasuraman, R. (2013) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.05.103 · Cited by 115 · see citing works
“Negative relationships between performance and hemodynamic response in frontal brain regions are generally interpreted as an increase in processing efficiency (Kelly and Garavan, 2005; Neubauer and Fink, 2009; Poldrack, 2000).”
Toward a “treadmill test” for cognition: Improved prediction of general cognitive ability from the task activated brain
Sripada, C., Angstadt, M., Rutherford, S. E., Taxali, A., & Shedden, K. (2020) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.25007 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
“These observations are consistent with a neural efficiency model of GCA proposed by Neubauer & Fink (2009).”
Result
Efficient hubs in the intelligent brain: Nodal efficiency of hub regions in the salience network is associated with general intelligence
Hilger, K., Ekman, M., Fiebach, C. J., & Basten, U. (2016) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2016.11.001 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
Trait anxiety and the neural efficiency of manipulation in working memory
Basten, U., Stelzel, C., & Fiebach, C. J. (2012) · Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3758/s13415-012-0100-3 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
“As differences in cognitive ability have previously been associated with differences in neural effort and— consequently—in efficiency (Neubauer & Fink, 2009a), we considered it important to assure that differences in neural measures that were attributed to anxiety could not instead be explained by…”
Background
Preparation for action: Psychophysiological activity preceding a motor skill as a function of expertise, performance outcome, and psychological pressure
Cooke, A., Kavussanu, M., Gallicchio, G., Willoughby, A. R., McIntyre, D. B., & Ring, C. (2014) · Psychophysiology · doi:10.1111/psyp.12182 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
Neural correlates of metacognitive ability and of feeling confident: a large-scale fMRI study
Molenberghs, P., Trautwein, F., Böckler, A., Singer, T., & Kanske, P. (2016) · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience · doi:10.1093/scan/nsw093 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
“However, there is also evidence that contextual factors such as (subjective) task difficulty can induce positive correlations (Neubauer and Fink, 2009), potentially explaining the divergent finding from Yokoyama et al. (2010).”
Background
Intelligence and creativity share a common cognitive and neural basis.
Frith, E., Elbich, D., Christensen, A. P., Rosenberg, M. D., Chen, Q., Kane, M. J., Silvia, P. J., Seli, P., & Beaty, R. E. (2020) · Journal of Experimental Psychology General · doi:10.1037/xge0000958 · Cited by 114 · see citing works
“…Gf was linked to less task-induced brain network configuration across several cognitive tasks (compared with baseline resting-state organization), extending early univariate activation findings on intelligence and neural efficiency (Neubauer & Fink, 2009) to the level of brain network dynamics.”
Background
Cognitive neuroscience of social emotions and implications for psychopathology: Examining embarrassment, guilt, envy, and schadenfreude
Jankowski, K. F., & Takahashi, H. (2014) · Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences · doi:10.1111/pcn.12182 · Cited by 110 · see citing works
Music Therapy Using Singing Training Improves Psychomotor Speed in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease: A Neuropsychological and fMRI Study
Satoh, M., Yuba, T., Tabei, K., Okubo, Y., Kida, H., Sakuma, H., & Tomimoto, H. (2015) · Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders Extra · doi:10.1159/000436960 · Cited by 108 · see citing works
A key role for experimental task performance: effects of math talent, gender and performance on the neural correlates of mental rotation.
Hoppe, C., Fliessbach, K., Stausberg, S., Stojanovic, J., Trautner, P., Elger, C., & Weber, B. (2012) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2011.10.008 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
“non-talented adolescents but again with equally low to moderate performance of both groups (accuracy: gifted 43%, controls 40%); thus, the same critical rational applies as to O’Boyle et al. (2005). In the present study, mathematically gifted subjects showed superior performance during both the control condition and t…”
Background
EEG Microstate Correlates of Fluid Intelligence and Response to Cognitive Training
on behalf of Honeywell SHARP Team authors, Santarnecchi, E., Khanna, A. R., Musaeus, C. S., Benwell, C., Davila-Pérez, P., Farzan, F., Matham, S., Pascual‐Leone, Á., & Shafi, M. M. (2017) · Brain Topography · doi:10.1007/s10548-017-0565-z · Cited by 116 · see citing works
“2006; Neubauer and Fink 2009).”
Exploring the Neural Dynamics Underpinning Individual Differences in Sentence Comprehension
Prat, C. S., & Just, M. A. (2010) · Cerebral Cortex · doi:10.1093/cercor/bhq241 · Cited by 100 · see citing works
The functional connectome of cognitive reserve
Marques, P., Moreira, P. S., Magalhães, R. J. D. S., Costa, P., Santos, N. C., Zihl, J., Soares, J. M., & Sousa, N. (2016) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.23242 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
How Skill Expertise Shapes the Brain Functional Architecture: An fMRI Study of Visuo-Spatial and Motor Processing in Professional Racing-Car and Naïve Drivers
Bernardi, G., Ricciardi, E., Sani, L., Gaglianese, A., Papasogli, A., Ceccarelli, R., Franzoni, F., Galetta, F., Santoro, G., Goebel, R., et al. (2013) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0077764 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
“…’ hypothesis, which postulates a more efficient cortical functioning based on both a reduced utilization of resources and an improvement in information processing, thanks to a better communication between task-related brain areas, in expert/skilled as compared to ‘ordinary’ individuals [15,27-29].”
Influential
Anterior insular cortex is a bottleneck of cognitive control
Wu, T., Wang, X., Wu, Q., Spagna, A., Yang, J., Yuan, C., Wu, Y., Gao, Z., Hof, P. R., & Fan, J. (2019) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.02.042 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
“The neural efficiency theory proposes that for complex tasks with a large amount of information to be processed, high cognitive ability is accompanied by greater neuronal involvement (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Working memory training is associated with lower prefrontal cortex activation in a divergent thinking task
Vartanian, O. A., Jobidon, M.-E., Bouak, F., Nakashima, A., Smith, I., Lam, Q., & Cheung, B. (2013) · Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.12.060 · Cited by 92 · see citing works
“the two leading theoretical frameworks of the neuroscience of intelligence: The neural efficiency hypothesis, according to which there is an inverse relation between psychometric intelligence and brain metabolism (Neubauer and Fink, 2009), and the Parieto‐Frontal Integration Theory (P‐FIT), according to which intellig…”
BackgroundMethod
Enhancing neural efficiency of cognitive processing speed via training and neurostimulation: An fNIRS and TMS study
Curtin, A., Ayaz, H., Tang, Y., Sun, J., Wang, J., & Tong, S. (2019) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.05.020 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
Behavioral and fMRI evidence that cognitive ability modulates the effect of semantic context on speech intelligibility.
Zekveld, A., Rudner, M., Johnsrude, I., Heslenfeld, D., & Rönnberg, J. (2012) · Brain and Language · doi:10.1016/j.bandl.2012.05.006 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
“Neubauer and Fink (2009) have reviewed studies addressing the relation between cognitive abilities and resource allocation.”
BackgroundResultInfluential
The perceptual and phenomenal capacity of mental imagery
Keogh, R., & Pearson, J. (2017) · Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2017.02.004 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
“These capacity limits are found across most cognitive domains, such as general intelligence (Neubauer & Fink, 2009), multi-tasking (Monsell, 2003; Rogers & Monsell, 1995), auditory and visual short-term memory (Bays & Husain, 2008; Grimault et al., 2014; Luck & Vogel, 1997; Vogel & Machizawa, 2004)…”
Background
Untitled work
(2017) · doi:10.1145/3106237.3106268 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
“Neural efficiency is a phenomenon where lower brain activation indicates that a cognitive process is more efficient and thereby is perceived as easier [30].”
Background
Creativity and schizotypy from the neuroscience perspective
Fink, A., Weber, B., Koschutnig, K., Benedek, M., Reishofer, G., Ebner, F., Papousek, I., & Weiss, E. M. (2013) · Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3758/s13415-013-0210-6 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
“For instance, recent neuroimaging studies have revealed a reliable and consistent picture of some brain correlates underlying intelligence , with respect to both structural and functional characteristics of the brain (Jung & Haier, 2007; Neubauer & Fink, 2009).”
Self-citation
Attention and working memory training: A feasibility study in children with neurodevelopmental disorders
Kerns, K. A., Macoun, S., MacSween, J., Pei, J., & Hutchison, M. (2017) · Applied Neuropsychology: Child · doi:10.1080/21622965.2015.1109513 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
The Age of Neuroergonomics: Towards Ubiquitous and Continuous Measurement of Brain Function with fNIRS
Curtin, A., & Ayaz, H. (2018) · Japanese Psychological Research · doi:10.1111/jpr.12227 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
EEG microstate features according to performance on a mental arithmetic task
Kim, K., Duc, N. T., Choi, M., & Lee, B. (2021) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-020-79423-7 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
Cross-modal activation of auditory regions during visuo-spatial working memory in early deafness
Ding, H., Qin, W., Liang, M., Ming, D., Wan, B., Li, Q., & Yu, C. (2015) · Brain · doi:10.1093/brain/awv165 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
“In hearing subjects, working memory performance is mainly associated with activations in the lateral frontal and parietal regions and negative correlations between performance and activation are in line with the neural efficiency hypothesis (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Result
Sleep and Cortisol Interact to Support Memory Consolidation
Bennion, K. A., Steinmetz, K. R. M., Kensinger, E. A., & Payne, J. D. (2013) · Cerebral Cortex · doi:10.1093/cercor/bht255 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
Activity in the fronto-parietal multiple-demand network is robustly associated with individual differences in working memory and fluid intelligence
Assem, M., Blank, I., Mineroff, Z., Ademoğlu, A., & Fedorenko, E. G. (2020) · Cortex · doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2020.06.013 · Cited by 87 · see citing works
Speech‐perception training for older adults with hearing loss impacts word recognition and effort
Kuchinsky, S. E., Ahlstrom, J. B., Cute, S. L., Humes, L. E., Dubno, J. R., & Eckert, M. A. (2014) · Psychophysiology · doi:10.1111/psyp.12242 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
“…that, when faced with a challenging task, individuals who have sufficient perceptual and cognitive abilities are able to exert additional effort to perform successfully, and thus exhibit robust neural and pupillary responses (Neubauer & Fink, 2009; van der Meer et al., 2010; Zekveld et al., 2011).”
Brain networks for working memory and factors of intelligence assessed in males and females with fMRI and DTI
Tang, C. Y., Eaves, E. L., Ng, J., Carpenter, D. M., Mai, X., Schroeder, D. H., Condon, C. A., Colom, R., & Haier, R. J. (2010) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2010.03.003 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
“Further, we present analyses separately for males and females to test whether the P-FIT areas differ in activation during the non-verbal n-back memory task andwhether inverse correlations consistent with brain efficiency may be stronger in males, as suggested by Neubauer and Fink (2009).”
BackgroundMethod
Fluid Intelligence Allows Flexible Recruitment of the Parieto-Frontal Network in Analogical Reasoning
Preusse, F., Elke, V. D. M., Deshpande, G., Krüeger, F., & Wartenburger, I. (2011) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2011.00022 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
“, more efficient) cortical activity when performing a cognitive task (Haier et al., 1988; Neubauer and Fink, 2009b).”
BackgroundInfluential
Brain and effort: brain activation and effort-related working memory in healthy participants and patients with working memory deficits
Engström, M., Landtblom, A., & Karlsson, T. (2013) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2013.00140 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
“This pattern is similar to the notion of neural efficiency, as proposed by Neubauer and Fink (2009).”
Method
Steady state visually evoked potential (SSVEP) topography changes associated with cocoa flavanol consumption
Camfield, D., Scholey, A. B., Pipingas, A., Silberstein, R. B., Kras, M., Nolidin, K., Wesnes, K. A., Pase, M. P., & Stough, C. K. K. (2011) · Physiology & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.11.013 · Cited by 84 · see citing works
“According to the neural efficiency hypothesis of intelligence, participants who are more intelligent develop more efficient strategies to deal with the tasks that are of low–moderate difficulty, and this is evidenced by a lower level of brain activation [32].”
BackgroundResult
Short-term training in the Go/Nogo task: Behavioural and neural changes depend on task demands
Benikos, N., Johnstone, S. J., & Roodenrys, S. J. (2012) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2012.12.001 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
“Jodo and Inoue (1990) found that Go reaction time and Nogo P3 latency were significantly shortened after six days of practice (200 trials per day) - in line with previous theoretical viewpoints suggesting more efficient processing with training (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Result
Thalamo‐striato‐cortical determinants to fatigue in multiple sclerosis
Engström, M., Flensner, G., Landtblom, A., Ek, A., & Karlsson, T. (2013) · Brain and Behavior · doi:10.1002/brb3.181 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Basic functional trade-offs in cognition: An integrative framework
Giudice, M. D., & Crespi, B. J. (2018) · Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2018.06.008 · Cited by 80 · see citing works
“In a previous section, we noted that IQ correlates with the integrity of white matter fibers; the resulting increase in overall efficiency likely contributes to explain why higher IQ predicts better cognitive performance but lower energetic consumption in the brain (Neubauer & Fink, 2009).”
Posterior structural brain volumes differ in maltreated youth with and without chronic posttraumatic stress disorder
De Bellis, M. D., Hooper, S. R., Chen, S. D., Provenzale, J. M., Boyd, B. D., Glessner, C. E., MacFall, J. R., Payne, M. E., Rybczynski, R., & Woolley, D. P. (2015) · Development and Psychopathology · doi:10.1017/s0954579415000942 · Cited by 75 · see citing works
“Because higher IQ participants demonstrate a linear relationship with neural efficiency compared with lower IQ participants (Neubauer & Fink, 2009), and cortical thickness in this study participants’ age and IQ range (average to high average) show linear associations (Shaw et al., 2006), IQ group…”
Result
The neural correlates of memory encoding and recognition for own-race and other-race faces
Herzmann, G., Willenbockel, V., Tanaka, J. W., & Curran, T. (2011) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.07.019 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Efficiency of mitochondrial functioning as the fundamental biological mechanism of general intelligence (g).
Geary, D. C. (2018) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/rev0000124 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
The link between callosal thickness and intelligence in healthy children and adolescents
Eileen Luders, A., Thompson, P. M., Narr, K. L., Zamanyan, A., Chou, Y., Gutman, B. A., Dinov, I. D., & Toga, A. W. (2010) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2010.09.083 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
“” The current findings with respect to the corpus callosum possibly imply that more intelligent individuals (at least during childhood and adolescence) possess more efficient neuronal networks (Haier et al., 1988; Li et al., 2009; Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
The development and malleability of executive control abilities
Hsu, N. S., Novick, J. M., & Jaeggi, S. M. (2014) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00221 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Association of Structural Global Brain Network Properties with Intelligence in Normal Aging
Fischer, F. U., Wolf, D. G. F., Scheurich, A., & Fellgiebel, A. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0086258 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
A Scaffold for Efficiency in the Human Brain
Burzynska, A. Z., Garrett, D. D., Preuschhof, C., Nagel, I. E., Li, S., Bäckman, L., Heekeren, H. R., & Lindenberger, U. (2013) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.1426-13.2013 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
“Many functional neuroimaging studies suggest that better performers require less brain activity (relative to baseline) to successfully perform a task of a given difficulty level (Neubauer and Fink, 2009).”
Background
Exercise Intensity Influences Prefrontal Cortex Oxygenation during Cognitive Testing
Moriarty, T. A., Bourbeau, K., Bellovary, B. N., & Zuhl, M. (2019) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs9080083 · Cited by 74 · see citing works
“Likewise, higher cortical activity occurring along with a decrease in cognitive function may indicate reduced neural efficiency, and highlights greater neural input required for a given cognitive task [12].”
Background
Association between sleep duration and intelligence scores in healthy children.
Geiger, A., Achermann, P., & Jenni, O. G. (2010) · Developmental Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0019679 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
“In this framework, psychometrically assessed IQ scores have been associated with several physiological variables such as glucose metabolism rate and an electroencephalographic measure, the event-related desynchronization (Neubauer & Fink, 2009).”
Individual differences in the learning potential of human beings
Stern, E. (2017) · npj Science of Learning · doi:10.1038/s41539-016-0003-0 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Sex differences in the IQ-white matter microstructure relationship: A DTI study
Dunst, B., Benedek, M., Koschutnig, K., Jauk, E., & Neubauer, A. C. (2014) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2014.08.006 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Self-citation
A preliminary study of the effects of working memory training on brain function
Stevens, M. C. G., Gaynor, A. M., Bessette, K. L., & Pearlson, G. D. (2015) · Brain Imaging and Behavior · doi:10.1007/s11682-015-9416-2 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
“…effect of WM load was found before WM training, which could indicate either reduced need to engage this region at higher loads after training (e.g., greater Befficiency^ (Haier et al. 1992; Neubauer and Fink 2009), or consistently greater activation after training, regardless of task demands.”
Background
Individual differences in the neural basis of causal inferencing
Prat, C. S., Mason, R. A., & Just, M. A. (2010) · Brain and Language · doi:10.1016/j.bandl.2010.08.004 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
“In general, among healthy participants who can perform a task, higher cognitive abilities are indexed by less (more focal distribution or lower intensity) brain activation (see Neubauer and Fink (2009) for a review).”
Background
The Athlete’s Brain: Cross-Sectional Evidence for Neural Efficiency during Cycling Exercise
Ludyga, S., Gronwald, T., & Hottenrott, K. (2015) · Neural Plasticity · doi:10.1155/2016/4583674 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
“a more efficient cortical function [3].”
Neuroscience of Creativity
(2013) · The MIT Press eBooks · doi:10.7551/mitpress/9780262019583.001.0001 · Cited by 69 · see citing works
General, crystallized and fluid intelligence are not associated with functional global network efficiency: A replication study with the human connectome project 1200 data set
Kruschwitz, J., Waller, L., Daedelow, L. S., Walter, H., & Veer, I. M. (2018) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.01.018 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Processing speed, working memory, and executive functions: Independent or inter-related predictors of general intelligence
Frischkorn, G. T., Schubert, A., & Hagemann, D. (2019) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2019.05.003 · Cited by 71 · see citing works

Neural efficiency as a function of task demands
Dunst, B., Benedek, M., Jauk, E., Bergner, S., Koschutnig, K., Sommer, M., Ischebeck, A. K., Spinath, B., Arendasy, M. E., Bühner, M., et al. (2013) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2013.09.005 · Cited by 222 · see citing works
Self-citation
Neural efficiency in working memory tasks: The impact of task demand
Nussbaumer, D., Grabner, R. H., & Stern, E. (2015) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2015.04.004 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
Neural Efficiency in Working Memory Tasks: The Impact of Task Demand and Training
Nussbaumer, D., Grabner, R. H., & Stern, E. (2014) · eScholarship (California Digital Library)
Intelligence and neural efficiency: Measures of brain activation versus measures of functional connectivity in the brain
Neubauer, A. C., & Fink, A. (2008) · Intelligence · doi:10.1016/j.intell.2008.10.008 · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Self-citation
Intelligence and individual differences in becoming neurally efficient
Neubauer, A. C., Grabner, R. H., Freudenthaler, H. H., Beckmann, J. F., & Guthke, J. (2004) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2003.11.005 · Cited by 123 · see citing works
Self-citation

Authors: Neubauer, A. C., & Fink, A.
Affiliations: University of Graz (AT)
Corresponding author: Neubauer, Aljoscha C.
ORCID: Neubauer, Aljoscha C.
Venue: Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Published: 2009-07
Volume: 33
Issue: 7
Pages: 1004-1023
ISSN: 0149-7634 (ISSN-L)
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2009.04.001
OpenAlex: W2072541188
Cited by: 878
References: 149
Citations by year: 2026: 115 · 2025: 69 · 2024: 49 · 2023: 60 · 2022: 63 · 2021: 65 · 2020: 48 · 2019: 58 · 2018: 50 · 2017: 40 · 2016: 45 · 2015: 42 · 2014: 39 · 2013: 37 · 2012: 32
FWCI: 40.63
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Licence: www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations: Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Abilities and Testing
Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Creativity in Education and Neuroscience
Keywords: neural efficiency hypothesis, intelligence, brain activation, cognitive task difficulty, frontal cortex, cortical glucose metabolism, cognitive training, learning, moderators, abstract thinking, attention
MeSH terms: Brain, Brain Mapping, Cognition, Female, Humans, Intelligence, Male, Models, Neurological, Practice, Psychological, Professional Competence, Sex Characteristics

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Intelligence and neural efficiency

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