New Delhi: Intelligence is linked to how the brain functions as a whole rather than to any specific region or network, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Notre Dame in the US.

The study supports the Network Neuroscience Theory, which views intelligence as a result of coordinated and adaptable brain networks working together to solve problems.

Researchers analysed brain imaging and cognitive data from 831 adults participating in the Human Connectome Project, along with data from another group of 145 adults. The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications.

Lead author Ramsey Wilcox said the study found strong evidence of system-wide coordination in the brain that determines the range of cognitive abilities a person can support. He noted that intelligence depends more on how the brain is organised than on where it is located.

Professor Aron Barbey, a co-author, said intelligence relies on balancing local specialisation with global integration. He explained that tightly connected clusters must communicate effectively with distant regions through efficient pathways.

The researchers found that differences in intelligence were consistently linked to overall brain network properties, rather than any single area.

They concluded that general intelligence emerges when multiple brain processes work together under system-level coordination.