its advantages as a potential characterization and diagnostic tool are that: 1) identified rsFC circuit-alterations are less likely to be confounded by subtle differences in specific task-based experimental paradigms; 2) networks so identified appear to be consistent across time within and between individuals (Chen et al., 2008); 3) such networks appear to reflect the entirety of the cognitive elements necessary for task processing (Smith et al., 2009); and 4) relative to task-based fMRI methods, data collection is relatively quick and straight-forward – a useful quality when assessing patient populations with variable constraints on attentional, executive, and motor control. There are, however, certain methodological issues associated with rsFC-based techniques, a few of which will be briefly discussed at points throughout the review. Nonetheless, this emerging neuroimaging tool has provided researchers with additional insights and spurred novel theories about the underlying neural substrates of various neuropsychiatric disorders (e.g., Menon 2011).
