Charting the brain networks of impulsivity: Meta-analytic synthesis, functional connectivity modelling and neurotransmitter associations

Abstract

Impulsivity is a multidimensional construct that plays a crucial role in human behaviour and is believed to be a transdiagnostic marker of several psychiatric disorders. However, given its multifaceted nature, comprehensive investigations of its neural correlates are challenging. In this study, we used a multi-modal approach to investigate the functional network organisation of two domains in which impulsivity manifests: decision-making and action control. Within domain ALE meta-analyses identified two distinct functional systems: one located in the default-mode network, associated with value-based judgments and goal-directed decision-making, and the other distributed across higher-order networks associated with cognitive control. These systems were organised into four specialised communities of default-mode, cingulo-insular, frontoparietal, and temporal regions. Integration within those communities was associated with serotonin receptor density. These findings reinforce insights from previous behavioural research and provide substantial evidence for the multidimensional nature of impulsivity on the neural level.