The default mode network in cognition: a topographical perspective
Jonathan Smallwood, Boris C. Bernhardt, Robert Leech, Danilo Bzdok, Elizabeth Jefferies, Daniel S. Margulies
Nature Reviews Neuroscience July 5, 2021 DOI: 10.1038/s41583-021-00474-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Citations | 970 |
| Key points | Proposes that understanding the topographic characteristics of the default mode network can help clarify how it contributes to cognition and behavior. |
Abstract
The default mode network (DMN) is a set of widely distributed brain regions in the parietal, temporal and frontal cortex. These regions often show reductions in activity during attention-demanding tasks but increase their activity across multiple forms of complex cognition, many of which are linked to memory or abstract thought. Within the cortex, the DMN has been shown to be located in regions furthest away from those contributing to sensory and motor systems. Here, we consider how our knowledge of the topographic characteristics of the DMN can be leveraged to better understand how this network contributes to cognition and behaviour.
In the evidence
This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.
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Proposes that understanding the topographic characteristics of the DMN can clarify how it contributes to cognition and behavior.
Synthesized
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The default mode network: where the idiosyncratic self meets the shared social world | 2021 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The default-mode, ego-functions and free-energy: a neurobiological account of Freudian ideas | 2010 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Cooperation between the default mode network and the frontal–parietal network in the production of an internal train of thought | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Mechanisms of Psychedelic Visionary Experiences: Hypotheses from Evolutionary Psychology | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 87
- 20 years of the default mode network: A review and synthesis Neuron May 10, 2023
- Default Mode Network Modulation by Psychedelics: A Systematic Review The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology October 21, 2022
- Mindfulness meditation increases default mode, salience, and central executive network connectivity Scientific Reports August 2, 2022
- The brain in flow: A systematic review on the neural basis of the flow state. Cortex September 1, 2022
- The architecture of the human default mode network explored through cytoarchitecture, wiring and signal flow Nature Neuroscience January 28, 2025
and 82 more in the library
Cites 27
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- Patterns of Brain Activity Supporting Autobiographical Memory, Prospection, and Theory of Mind, and Their Relationship to the Default Mode Network Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience July 6, 2009
- Dynamic reconfiguration of the default mode network during narrative comprehension Nature Communications July 18, 2016
- Investigating the Functional Heterogeneity of the Default Mode Network Using Coordinate-Based Meta-Analytic Modeling Journal of Neuroscience November 18, 2009
- From cognitivism to autopoiesis: towards a computational framework for the embodied mind. Synthese 2018
and 22 more in the library