Parsing Brain Network Specialization: A Replication and Expansion of Wang et al. (2014).

Hemispheric specialization is a characteristic of brain organization that describes when a function draws on one hemisphere of the brain more than the other. We sought to identify the most specialized brain networks within individuals, as well as which connections contribute the most to a given network's specialization. Among the most specialized networks were those associated with language, attention, and executive control. Unexpectedly, we also identified networks associated with emotion/memory and theory of mind as highly specialized. Additionally, we found support for guiding principles of brain organization generally, such that within-network connections contributed most to a given network's specialization followed by connections from other specialized networks. These results have implications for identifying potential variations of network contributions in individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions.