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Meta-analytic evidence for a superordinate cognitive control network subserving diverse executive functions
Open accessAbstract
Classic cognitive theory conceptualizes executive functions as involving multiple specific domains, including initiation, inhibition, working memory, flexibility, planning, and vigilance. Lesion and neuroimaging experiments over the past two decades have suggested that both common and unique processes contribute to executive functions during higher cognition. It has been suggested that a superordinate fronto–cingulo–parietal network supporting cognitive control may also underlie a range of distinct executive functions. To test this hypothesis in the largest sample to date, we used quantitative meta-analytic methods to analyze 193 functional neuroimaging studies of 2,832 healthy individuals, ages 18–60, in which performance on executive function measures was contrasted with an active control condition. A common pattern of activation was observed in the prefrontal, dorsal anterior cingulate, and parietal cortices across executive function domains, supporting the idea that executive functions are supported by a superordinate cognitive control network. However, domain-specific analyses showed some variation in the recruitment of anterior prefrontal cortex, anterior and midcingulate regions, and unique subcortical regions such as the basal ganglia and cerebellum. These results are consistent with the existence of a superordinate cognitive control network in the brain, involving dorsolateral prefrontal, anterior cingulate, and parietal cortices, that supports a broad range of executive functions.
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“For example, Niendam et al.‘s [137] meta-analytic study of 193 neuroimaging fMRI studies of EF showed broad patterns of activation across the lateral and medial PFC, including regions BA-9 and BA-46 (dlPFC) and BA-32 (rostral ACC), as well as both superior and inferior regions of the parietal lobes for tasks with predominantly working memory, flexibility, or inhibitory components.”
From The role of prefrontal cortex in cognitive control and executive function (2022) · cites this paper as [137]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Conjunction maps of activation during different tasks (e.g., during inhibiting, updating, and shifting tasks), either with data estimated within one study [135, 138, 139] or with meta-analytic techniques [137, 140, 141], suggest that both children and adults recruit a common set of regions within the FPN and CON during diverse EF tasks.”
From The role of prefrontal cortex in cognitive control and executive function (2022) · cites this paper as [137]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“At the neurobiological level, this unity can be seen in the overall patterns of neural activations during CC tasks [135–137]: Neuroimaging studies suggest that individuals performing these kinds of tasks generally activate some of the same brain regions across multiple tasks, although they also activate some regions that are unique to a particular task.”
From The role of prefrontal cortex in cognitive control and executive function (2022) · cites this paper as [137]
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“The ECN, which overlaps with the frontostriatal and frontoparietal networks, is a fundamental neural substrate underpinning higher-order cognitive functions.”
From Cognitive Inflexibility Shares Across Schizophrenia and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Task-Based Functional MRI Study (2025) · cites this paper as [39]
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“The cognitive control network (CCN),7 mainly comprising the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, postparietal cortex, and frontal eye fields, plays a pivotal role in regulating top-down cognitive processes.8”
From Can Intermittent Theta-Burst Stimulation of Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Relieve Executive Dysfunction in Patients With Late-Life Depression? (2024) · cites this paper as [7]
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“The DLPFC is a key node within the cognitive control network, 13 which is thought to subserve executive functions, such as response inhibition, set-shifting, and planning.”
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In the citing paper
“The Go system could drive craving and engage habits via the basal ganglia.105,127”
From Neurobiology of addiction: a neurocircuitry analysis (2016) · cites this paper as [127]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn the citing paper
“It is now widely established that the frontoparietal control network (FPCN) plays an important role in executive control of attention.156–159”
From The default network and self-generated thought: component processes, dynamic control, and clinical relevance (2014) · cites this paper as [158]
In the citing paper
“Although the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is thought to play a key role in mediating executive control, neuroimaging and lesion studies demonstrated that the performance of executive tasks is associated with activation in a large set of brain regions, involving prefrontal and parietal areas, motor regions, as well as subcortical structures, such as basal ganglia and thalamus (Duncan and Owen, 2000; D”
From Executive control training from middle childhood to adolescence (2014) · cites this paper as Niendam et al., 2012
In the citing paper
“Decades of functional neuroimaging work has delineated brain networks underlying EFs that contribute to cognitive flexibility (21,22), namely the executive control/lateral frontoparietal (L-FPN) and salience/midcingulo-insular networks (M-CIN) (23–25).”
From Brain Mechanisms Supporting Flexible Cognition and Behavior in Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder (2021) · cites this paper as [22]
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Citations
Cites
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“Results of the combined analysis across domains showed that executive functions are indeed associated with increased activity in this common cognitive control network (Bellebaum & Daum, 2007; Botvinick et al., 2001; Carter et al., 1999; Cohen et al., 2000; D’Esposito & Postle, 2002; Yarkoni et al., 2005), which includ…”
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“Through increased understanding of the function of modular components within this network, along with their anatomical connections and functional interactions, we will be able to more effectively investigate the mechanisms by which aberrant behavior or clinical symptoms may result from dysfunction in individual region…”
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Owen, A. M., McMillan, K. M., Laird, A. R., & Bullmore, E. (2005) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.20131 · Cited by 3,560 · cited 1×
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Self-citationAnterior Cingulate Cortex, Error Detection, and the Online Monitoring of Performance
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“According to this view, cognitive control mechanisms support the range of executive functions, including working memory, selective attention, stimulus–response mapping, and performance monitoring (Carter et al., 1998; Cohen, Dunbar, & McClelland, 1990; Miyake & Shah, 1999; Shallice, 1988), and are not restricted to a…”
BackgroundSelf-citation
Research works printed but not linked: 1
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 1,001–1,007 of 1,007
Shan, H.-D., Wang, Y.-M., Hu, H.-X., Jiang, S.-Y., Chu, M.-Y., Wang, Y., Lui, S. S. Y., Cheung, E. F. C., Wang, Z., & Chan, R. C. K. (2022) · European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience · doi:10.1007/s00406-020-01222-y · Cited by 6
“These brain regions generally overlap with the executive control network (ECN) [19, 20].”
BackgroundYe, Q., Chen, H., Liu, R., Qin, R., Luo, C., Li, M., Xu, Y., Zhao, H., & Bai, F. (2021) · Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnagi.2021.756241 · Cited by 6
“Finally, the seeds for the MPFC networks in the present study were more ventral and anterior than brain regions commonly activated during executive function tasks as shown by a meta-analysis of 193 task-state fMRI studies (Niendam et al., 2012), despite the seeds in the present study were chosen based on published fin…”
Göke, K., McClintock, S. M., Mah, L., Rajji, T. K., Lee, H. H., Nestor, S. M., Downar, J., Noda, Y., Daskalakis, Z. J., Mulsant, B. H., et al. (2026) · The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/07067437251315515 · Cited by 4
“…cognitive safety 11 and potential to improve certain cognitive functions in TRD. 12 The DLPFC is a key node within the cognitive control network, 13 which is thought to subserve executive functions, such as response inhibition,set-shifting,andplanning. rTMSusesfocusedmag-netic fi eld pulses to…”
Johnsen, L. K., Larsen, K. M., Fuglsang, S. A., Ver Loren van Themaat, A. H., Baaré, W. F. C., Madsen, K. S., Madsen, K. H., Hemager, N., Andreassen, A. K., Veddum, L., et al. (2024) · Schizophrenia Bulletin · doi:10.1093/schbul/sbad134 · Cited by 4
“In accordance with the task-related activation patterns that have been reported in two previous meta-analyses, 7,40 we found consistent task-related activations in brain regions supporting executive control.”
ResultChu, M.-Y., Li, S.-B., Zhang, Y., Wang, L.-L., Lv, Q.-Y., Lui, S. S. Y., Wang, Z., Yi, Z.-H., Wang, Y., & Chan, R. C. K. (2025) · Schizophrenia Bulletin · doi:10.1093/schbul/sbaf220 · Cited by 2
Evidence from formal logical reasoning reveals that the language of thought is not natural language
Kean, H., Fung, A., Jaggers, P., Chen, J., Rule, J. S., Benn, Y., Tenenbaum, J. B., Piantadosi, S. T., Varley, R. A., & Fedorenko, E. (2026) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2520095123 · Cited by 2
Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders, N. C. R. C. F. M. D. &. N. C. F. M. D., Li, L., Ren, L., Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders, N. C. R. C. F. M. D. &. N. C. F. M. D., Liu, C., & Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders, N. C. R. C. F. M. D. &. N. C. F. M. D. (2024) · Alpha Psychiatry · doi:10.5152/alphapsychiatry.2024.231485 · Cited by 1
“The cognitive control network (CCN), 7 mainly comprising the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, postparietal cortex, and frontal eye fields, plays a pivotal role in regulating top-down cognitive processes.”
Background
Metadata
- Authors
- Niendam, T. A., Laird, A. R., Ray, K. L., Dean, Y. M., Glahn, D. C., & Carter, C. S.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Davis (US)
- The University of Texas at San Antonio Health Science Center (US)
- Yale University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Niendam, Tara A.
- Venue
- Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience
- Published
- 2012-01-27
- Volume
- 12
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 241-268
- ISSN
- 1530-7026 (ISSN-L)
- 1531-135X
- PMC
- PMC3660731
- OpenAlex
- W2019930104
- Semantic Scholar
- 98fddd2e31078947295c667fc52d483f3e530f48
- Cited by
- 1,700
- References
- 266
- Citations by year
- 2026: 119 · 2025: 153 · 2024: 156 · 2023: 143 · 2022: 156 · 2021: 170 · 2020: 117 · 2019: 146 · 2018: 123 · 2017: 125 · 2016: 84 · 2015: 75 · 2014: 77 · 2013: 39 · 2012: 15
- FWCI
- 33.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (P60AA007611)
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH074457, R01MH078143, R24MH081807, R01MH059883, K23MH087708, R01MH083824)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Functions and Memory
- Keywords
- executive function, cognitive control, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, parietal cortex, inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility, basal ganglia, cerebellum, functional neuroimaging
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Brain, Brain Mapping, Cognition, Female, Humans, Functional Laterality, Male, Middle Aged, Neural Pathways, Neuropsychological Tests, Radionuclide Imaging, Visual Perception, Young Adult, Executive Function, Neuroimaging
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