Brain patterns tied to IQ may actually reflect socioeconomic privilege, study finds

A large analysis of children's brain scans found that socioeconomic status is the primary factor shaping brain organization, outweighing other influences on childhood brain development. The findings indicate that brain patterns neuroscientists previously treated as a biological signature of intelligence may instead reflect environmental conditions linked to privilege or deprivation, such as stress and sleep deprivation. The results challenge the interpretation of neural differences as innate markers of cognitive ability and point to the outsized role of a child's socioeconomic environment.