Recollection of verbal materials engages the default mode network more strongly than recollection of visual materials: An fMRI meta-analysis.
Hongkeun Kim
Biological Psychology June 3, 2026 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2026.109310 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Keywords | Episodic memory Meta-analysis Recollection Semantic processing |
| Key findings | Recollection of verbal materials shows stronger and more widespread engagement of the default mode network than recollection of visual materials. |
Abstract
Functional neuroimaging studies consistently show that episodic recollection engages the default mode network (DMN), yet the extent to which this engagement varies with the representational content of retrieved information remains unclear. The present meta-analysis examined whether recollection of verbal and visual materials differentially recruits the DMN. Twenty-four verbal and 19 visual studies were included; recollection was operationalized using subjective measures, and network correspondence was assessed using the Yeo 17-network parcellation. Both forms of recollection engaged the DMN, but recollection of verbal materials showed stronger and more widespread recruitment across all three DMN subnetworks than recollection of visual materials. Direct contrasts likewise revealed consistent preferential associations for verbal relative to visual recollection across all DMN subdivisions. Separate analyses of word-, object-, and scene-based recollection further supported a verbal bias in DMN engagement. The bias may reflect a greater reliance of verbal recollection on DMN-supported conceptual integration, or semantic scaffolding, than visual recollection. More broadly, the findings suggest that differences associated with the verbal-visual dimension may constitute an important organizing principle of DMN function in episodic memory and may help account for variability across prior neuroimaging findings, with potential implications for other DMN-supported domains.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The wandering brain: Meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies of mind-wandering and related spontaneous thought processes | 2015 | Meta-analysis | |
| Investigating the Functional Heterogeneity of the Default Mode Network Using Coordinate-Based Meta-Analytic Modeling | 2009 | Meta-analysis | |
| The Default Mode Network in Healthy Individuals: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy individuals | 2016 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| Dreaming as mind wandering: evidence from functional neuroimaging and first-person content reports. | 2013 | Systematic review with meta-analytic comparison | |
| Default Mode Network Modulation by Psychedelics: A Systematic Review Participants from included studies | 2022 | Systematic review |