Convergent neural signatures of optimal creative performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The neural architecture that supports optimal creative performance across diverse contexts remains unclear. To address this question, we conducted a quantitative meta-analysis to identify convergent patterns of brain activation associated with enhanced creativity and to examine their relationships with behavioral improvements. A total of 33 neuroimaging studies involving 965 participants were included, encompassing four enhancement contexts: creativity training, domain-specific expertise, trait-level creativity, and positive stimulus conditioning. Across these contexts, superior creative performance (Hedges' g = 0.668) was consistently characterized by increased activation in the left middle frontal gyrus (LMFG), left superior frontal gyrus (LSFG), and left inferior parietal gyrus (LIPG), together with decreased activation in the right precuneus (95 % CI [0.508, 0.828]). Meta-regression analyses revealed that longer intervention duration and greater professional experience predicted stronger LSFG and LIPG activation, whereas age and sex ratio showed no significant effects. LSFG activation was attenuated during convergent thinking tasks, suggesting task-specific modulation of creative neural circuits. These findings provide systematic evidence for a convergent neural signature of superior creative performance across multiple enhancement pathways, offering empirical targets for future training and neuromodulation-based interventions to optimize creative potential.