The mystery of left-handedness has long been an intriguing subject for psychologists and medical researchers, and of course the ten per cent of the population who are left-handed.
It appears that there is no conclusive evidence that left-handed people differ very significantly from their right-handed counterparts in many ways. However, a new piece of research reported in Psychology Today suggests that there may be a link between left handedness and neurodiversity. Here’s a closer look at the claims.
Why are some people left handed?
A person’s preference for using their right or left hand depends on whether the right or left side of the brain is dominant: left-handed people have dominant right sides of their brain, while right handed people have dominant left sides. This is known as brain asymmetry.
Most people have a left-hemisphere dominance for language, and a right-hemisphere dominance for visual and spacious awareness tasks. This has led to a theory that left-handed people have superior abilities in some fields, such as sports, art and design, and music.
Whether or not this is the case remains a matter of debate, as studies exist both to prove and disprove these theories. However, if you are a creative left handed person, you are in good company: the Simpsons creator Matt Groening, Lady Gaga, Sir Paul McCartney, and Barack Obama are all left-handed.
Historic prejudices against left handers
Historically, left-handed people were forced to use their right hands for tasks such as writing, and the word ‘left’ has a negative etymology. It is variously derived from old words for ‘sinister’, ‘weak’ and ‘clumsy’, and in the Middle Ages left handed people were even accused of witchcraft.
An intersection with neurodiversity?
Fortunately today, in most areas of the world there is no particular stigma attached to being left handed, but new research suggests that there may be an intersection between being left handed and having neurological diversities such as autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
They may also experience more difficulties in social situations, which can give rise to issues such as social anxiety and isolation. The study involved testing visitors to the Science Museum in London to complete a pegboard task, recording which hand was faster.
The visitors were also asked to rate the expressiveness of emotions on the pictures of faces, which showed emotion on either the right or left half, with the other half being neutral.
The visitors also filled out a questionnaire and performed a test on language fluency. The results found that people had a bias towards the left half of the face, and that people who do not conform to the right-handed majority had differences in emotional lateralisation. This may lead them to taking longer to respond to social cues, creating more social difficulties.
Some people may benefit from exploring issues such as social anxiety with a therapeutic model known as Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS), which can help people to process difficult emotions and restore inner harmony.
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