Baseline pupil diameter does not correlate with fluid intelligence

Abstract

There has been debate regarding the correlation between baseline/resting state measures of pupil diameter and cognitive abilities such as working memory capacity and fluid intelligence. A positive correlation between baseline pupil diameter and cognitive ability has been cited as evidence for a role of the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) and its functional connection with cortical networks as a reason for individual differences in fluid intelligence (Tsukahara & Engle, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(46), e2110630118, 2021a). Several recent attempts to replicate this correlation have failed. The current studies make another attempt and find substantial evidence against a positive correlation between pupil diameter and intelligence. Given the data from the current studies in combination with other recent failures to replicate, we conclude that individual differences in baseline pupil diameter should not be used as evidence for a role of the LC-NE system in goal-directed cognitive activity.