Functional differentiation of the default and frontoparietal control networks predicts individual differences in creative achievement: Evidence from macroscale cortical gradients

Much of the research on the neural correlates of creativity has emphasized creative cognition, and growing evidence suggests that creativity is related to functional properties of the default and frontoparietal control networks. The present work expands on this body of evidence by testing associations of creative achievement with connectivity profiles of brain networks assessed using macroscale cortical gradients. Using resting-state connectivity fMRI in two community samples (N’s = 236 & 234), we found evidence that creative achievement is positively associated with greater functional dissimilarity between core regions of the default and frontoparietal control networks. These results suggest that creative achievement is supported by the ability of these two networks to carry out more distinct cognitive roles. This research provides further evidence, using a cortical gradient approach, that individual differences in creative achievement can be predicted from functional properties of brain networks involved in higher-order cognition, and aligns with past research on the functional connectivity correlates of creative task performance.