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Muayqil T, Alhaluli A, Alzamil L, AlKanaan RK, Almousa Y, Alshamrani R. Assessing the Relationship Between Religious Beliefs and Ethnicity and Handedness and Footedness. Cureus 2023; 15:e50688. [PMID: 38111809 PMCID: PMC10726082 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.50688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Objectives The objective of the study is to explore the correlation between handedness and footedness and various demographic factors, including sex, age, faith, ethnicity, and perceived social pressures on limb use, among Muslims and non-Muslims. Methods This is an analytical cross-sectional study conducted in Saudi Arabia from September 2020 to February 2021. This research involved healthy community members aged 18 and above. An electronic survey was administered to collect demographic information on age, sex, faith, ethnicity, and the perceived degree of social pressure favoring the use of the right hand. The Waterloo handedness questionnaire (WHQ-Ar) and Waterloo footedness questionnaire (WFQ-Ar) were utilized for the assessments. Results A total of 728 respondents completed the survey. The mean (SD) age was 34.54 (11.53). Among them, 454 (62.4%) were ethnically Arab, and 507 (69.64%) identified as Muslims. The mean (SD) WHQ-Ar and WFQ-Ar scores were 42 (31.6) and 10.51 (8.1), respectively, with higher scores indicating "right" preference. Older age was associated with higher scores (p = 0.01) and men with lower handedness scores (p = 0.003). Participants who did not perceive social pressure had significantly lower scores (p < 0.001). Footedness was associated with slightly lower scores in Muslims (p = 0.001). Conclusion The degree of pressure perceived to use a particular hand has a major influence on handedness scores in Muslims and non-Muslims alike; this was true even when comparing populations with different levels of permissiveness to specific hand use due to varying religious or cultural backgrounds. Social pressure, regardless of routine religious practices, is more likely to influence handedness scores. Age and sex influence the scores similar to international reports, and footedness appears less likely to fall under the influence of cultural pressures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taim Muayqil
- Neurology, King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, SAU
| | | | - Lama Alzamil
- Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, SAU
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Does owner handedness influence paw preference in dogs? Anim Cogn 2023; 26:425-433. [PMID: 36057017 PMCID: PMC9950156 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-022-01673-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
Handedness has proven to be the most effective and least intrusive measure of laterality in many species. Several studies have investigated paw preference in dogs (Canis familiaris) without considering the potential impact that owner's handedness may have on it, despite dogs being a domesticated species. The aim of this study was to investigate whether owner handedness influences paw preference in their dogs. Sixty-two dogs had their paw preference tested using a Paw Task and a Reach Task in their home over 10 days, recorded by their owners. Interestingly, it was found that left-handed owners were more likely to own a dog with a left paw bias, and right-handed owners were more likely to own a dog with a right paw bias. In the Paw Task, the hand presented to a dog did not significantly predict which paw the dog lifted in response. Furthermore, it was found that females displayed a right paw bias at all age groups. However, males had a left paw bias in puppyhood and right paw bias in older age groups. We conclude that owner handedness influences paw preference in dogs, and it should be considered when suitably pairing dogs to potential owners, especially in assistance work.
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Morange-Majoux F, Devouche E. Neonatal manual specialization in language and music conditions: Consistency with the hemispheric specialization adult model. Early Hum Dev 2022; 168:105575. [PMID: 35468573 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2022.105575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2021] [Revised: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The main purpose of this study was to test in neonates the influence of the sound environment, i.e., language versus music, on asymmetric hand movement activity in the presence of a target object. Based on hemispheric specialization, our hypothesis was that infants would use their right hand more in the speech context (left hemisphere) and their left hand more in the music context (right hemisphere). The study involved 19 full-term 3-day-old neonates. An object was presented successively in the two sound environments in counterbalance order for 120 s each. Left and right movements and mouth activity were scored during the target object presentation. Results show that neonates moved their left hand twice as much as their right hand in the music condition than in the language condition, and they moved their right hand a longer time in the language condition than in the music condition. The average number of sucking bursts was significantly higher in the language condition than in the music condition. We discuss the results in terms of manual specialization in relation to the development of hemispheric specialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Morange-Majoux
- Université de Paris, LPPS, F-92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, France; Laboratory Paragraphe, EA 349, Paris 8 University, 93200 Saint-Denis, France.
| | - E Devouche
- Université de Paris, LPPS, F-92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, France.
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Limb Preference in Animals: New Insights into the Evolution of Manual Laterality in Hominids. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14010096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Until the 1990s, the notion of brain lateralization—the division of labor between the two hemispheres—and its more visible behavioral manifestation, handedness, remained fiercely defined as a human specific trait. Since then, many studies have evidenced lateralized functions in a wide range of species, including both vertebrates and invertebrates. In this review, we highlight the great contribution of comparative research to the understanding of human handedness’ evolutionary and developmental pathways, by distinguishing animal forelimb asymmetries for functionally different actions—i.e., potentially depending on different hemispheric specializations. Firstly, lateralization for the manipulation of inanimate objects has been associated with genetic and ontogenetic factors, with specific brain regions’ activity, and with morphological limb specializations. These could have emerged under selective pressures notably related to the animal locomotion and social styles. Secondly, lateralization for actions directed to living targets (to self or conspecifics) seems to be in relationship with the brain lateralization for emotion processing. Thirdly, findings on primates’ hand preferences for communicative gestures accounts for a link between gestural laterality and a left-hemispheric specialization for intentional communication and language. Throughout this review, we highlight the value of functional neuroimaging and developmental approaches to shed light on the mechanisms underlying human handedness.
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Hand Movements in Communicative and Noncommunicative Situations in Very Young Infants: A Preliminary Study. JOURNAL OF MOTOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT 2021. [DOI: 10.1123/jmld.2020-0005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
As a step toward understanding the developmental relationship between handedness and language lateralization, this longitudinal study investigated how infants (N = 21) move their hands in noncommunicative and communicative situations at 2 weeks and at 3 months of age. The authors looked at whether left-right asymmetry in hand movements and in duration of self-touch appeared across conditions and whether the direction of asymmetry depended on the communicative nature of the situation. The authors found that asymmetries appeared less consistently than suggested in literature and did not only depend on the communicative nature of the situation. Instead, hand activity and self-touch patterns depended on age, the presence of the mother, the degree of novelty of the situation, and the presence of an object. The results partly support previous studies that pointed out an early differentiation of communicative hand movements versus noncommunicative ones in infants. It is in terms of the amount of global hand activity, rather than in those of the laterality of hand movements that this differentiation emerged in this study. At 3 months, infants moved their hands more in the communicative conditions than in the noncommunicative conditions and this difference appeared as a tendency already at 2 weeks of age.
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Packheiser J, Schmitz J, Berretz G, Carey DP, Paracchini S, Papadatou-Pastou M, Ocklenburg S. Four meta-analyses across 164 studies on atypical footedness prevalence and its relation to handedness. Sci Rep 2020; 10:14501. [PMID: 32879356 PMCID: PMC7468297 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-71478-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Human lateral preferences, such as handedness and footedness, have interested researchers for decades due to their pronounced asymmetries at the population level. While there are good estimates on the prevalence of handedness in the population, there is no large-scale estimation on the prevalence of footedness. Furthermore, the relationship between footedness and handedness still remains elusive. Here, we conducted meta-analyses with four different classification systems for footedness on 145,135 individuals across 164 studies including new data from the ALSPAC cohort. The study aimed to determine a reliable point estimate of footedness, to study the association between footedness and handedness, and to investigate moderating factors influencing footedness. We showed that the prevalence of atypical footedness ranges between 12.10% using the most conservative criterion of left-footedness to 23.7% including all left- and mixed-footers as a single non-right category. As many as 60.1% of left-handers were left-footed whereas only 3.2% of right-handers were left-footed. Males were 4.1% more often non-right-footed compared to females. Individuals with psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders exhibited a higher prevalence of non-right-footedness. Furthermore, the presence of mixed-footedness was higher in children compared to adults and left-footedness was increased in athletes compared to the general population. Finally, we showed that footedness is only marginally influenced by cultural and social factors, which play a crucial role in the determination of handedness. Overall, this study provides new and useful reference data for laterality research. Furthermore, the data suggest that footedness is a valuable phenotype for the study of lateral motor biases, its underlying genetics and neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Packheiser
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44780, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Judith Schmitz
- School of Medicine, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Gesa Berretz
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44780, Bochum, Germany
| | - David P Carey
- Perception, Action and Memory Research Group, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, UK
| | | | - Marietta Papadatou-Pastou
- School of Education, Department of Primary Education, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44780, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
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Prieur J, Lemasson A, Barbu S, Blois‐Heulin C. History, development and current advances concerning the evolutionary roots of human right‐handedness and language: Brain lateralisation and manual laterality in non‐human primates. Ethology 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jacques Prieur
- CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) – UMR 6552 Universite de Rennes, Normandie Universite Paimpont France
| | - Alban Lemasson
- CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) – UMR 6552 Universite de Rennes, Normandie Universite Paimpont France
| | - Stéphanie Barbu
- CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) – UMR 6552 Universite de Rennes, Normandie Universite Paimpont France
| | - Catherine Blois‐Heulin
- CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) – UMR 6552 Universite de Rennes, Normandie Universite Paimpont France
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8
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Robira B, Pouydebat E, San-Galli A, Meulman EJM, Aubaile F, Breuer T, Masi S. Handedness in gestural and manipulative actions in male hunter-gatherer Aka pygmies from Central African Republic. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 166:481-491. [PMID: 29427288 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2017] [Revised: 01/22/2018] [Accepted: 01/25/2018] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES All human populations display a right-biased handedness. Nonetheless, if studies on western populations are plenty, investigations of traditional populations living at subsistence levels are rare. Yet, understanding the geographical variation of phenotypes of handedness is crucial for testing evolutionary hypotheses. We aimed to provide a preliminary investigation of factors affecting handedness in 25 Aka pygmies from Central African Republic when spontaneously gesturing or manipulating food/tools (Nactions = 593). MATERIALS AND METHODS We recorded spontaneous behaviors and characterized individuals' hand preference using GLMM with descriptive variables as target position, task complexity (unimanual/bimanual), task nature (food/tool manipulation, gesture), and task physical/cognitive constraints (precision or power for manipulative actions and informative content for gestures). RESULTS Individuals were lateralized to the right (93%, N = 15) when manipulating food/tools but not when gesturing. Hand preference was affected by target position but not by task complexity. While nonexplicitly informative gestures were more biased to the right compared to explicitly informative ones, no differences were found within food/tool manipulation (power or precision vs. none). DISCUSSION Although we do not intend to assume generalizable results due to our reduced sample, our observations provide additional information on handedness in a contemporary traditional society. Especially, the study mainly evidenced considerable cultural effects in gestures while also supporting theories considering active tool manipulation as one of the overriding factor in human handedness evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Robira
- Institut de biologie de l'Ecole normale supérieure (IBENS), Ecole Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, PSL Research University, Paris, France.,Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Emmanuelle Pouydebat
- Department of Ecology and Management of Biodiversity, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, UMR 7179-CNRS/MNHN, MECADEV, Paris, France
| | - Aurore San-Galli
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Ellen J M Meulman
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Françoise Aubaile
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Thomas Breuer
- Global Conservation Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, New York
| | - Shelly Masi
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
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9
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Liang J, Wilkinson K, Sainburg RL. Is Hand Selection Modulated by Cognitive-perceptual Load? Neuroscience 2017; 369:363-373. [PMID: 29129794 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2017.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2017] [Revised: 11/01/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies proposed that selecting which hand to use for a reaching task appears to be modulated by a factor described as "task difficulty". However, what features of a task might contribute to greater or lesser "difficulty" in the context of hand selection decisions has yet to be determined. There has been evidence that biomechanical and kinematic factors such as movement smoothness and work can predict patterns of selection across the workspace, suggesting a role of predictive cost analysis in hand-selection. We hypothesize that this type of prediction for hand-selection should recruit substantial cognitive resources and thus should be influenced by cognitive-perceptual loading. We test this hypothesis by assessing the role of cognitive-perceptual loading on hand selection decisions, using a visual search task that presents different levels of difficulty (cognitive-perceptual load), as established in previous studies on overall response time and efficiency of visual search. Although the data are necessarily preliminary due to small sample size, our data suggested an influence of cognitive-perceptual load on hand selection, such that the dominant hand was selected more frequently as cognitive load increased. Interestingly, cognitive-perceptual loading also increased cross-midline reaches with both hands. Because crossing midline is more costly in terms of kinematic and kinetic factors, our findings suggest that cognitive processes are normally engaged to avoid costly actions, and that the choice not-to-cross midline requires cognitive resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiali Liang
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
| | - Krista Wilkinson
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA; E. K. Shriver Center of the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01655, USA
| | - Robert L Sainburg
- Department of Kinesiology and Neurology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
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Espírito-Santo H, Pires CF, Garcia IQ, Daniel F, Silva AGD, Fazio RL. Preliminary validation of the Portuguese Edinburgh Handedness Inventory in an adult sample. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY-ADULT 2017; 24:275-287. [PMID: 28362169 DOI: 10.1080/23279095.2017.1290636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) is persistently the most used inventory to evaluate handedness, being neuropsychological investigation and clinical practice. Despite this, there is no information on how this instrument functions in a Portuguese population. The objective of this study was therefore to examine the sociodemographic influences on handedness and establish psychometric properties of the EHI in a Portuguese sample. The sample consisted of 342 adults (157 men and 185 women), assessed with a battery of neuropsychological tests. The mean EHI Laterality Quotient was 63.52 (SD = 38.00). A much high percentage of ambiguous-handedness compared to left-handedness was detected. An inconsistency was found between the preference for formal education activities (writing-drawing-using scissors) and the remaining EHI activities. From sociodemographic variables, only age, area, and regions of residence showed significant influence on EHI scores. The reliability and temporal reliability of EHI were adequate. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a one-factor model (χ2/df = 2.141; TLI = 0.972; CFI = 0.979; RMSEA = 0.058). The inconsistency between formal education and nonformal activities could be an indicator of social pressure. The present data give support for the notion that handedness measured by EHI is potentially sensitive to sociodemographic and cultural influences.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Fernanda Daniel
- a Instituto Superior Miguel Torga , Coimbra , Portugal.,b Centro de Estudos e Investigação em Saúde da Universidade de Coimbra , Coimbra , Portugal
| | - Alexandre Gomes da Silva
- b Centro de Estudos e Investigação em Saúde da Universidade de Coimbra , Coimbra , Portugal.,c Instituto Politécnico de Coimbra , Coimbra , Portugal
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Cochet H. Manual asymmetries and hemispheric specialization: Insight from developmental studies. Neuropsychologia 2016; 93:335-341. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.12.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2015] [Revised: 12/17/2015] [Accepted: 12/18/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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12
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Karim AKMR, Proulx MJ, Likova LT. Anticlockwise or clockwise? A dynamic Perception-Action-Laterality model for directionality bias in visuospatial functioning. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 68:669-693. [PMID: 27350096 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2015] [Revised: 06/18/2016] [Accepted: 06/22/2016] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Orientation bias and directionality bias are two fundamental functional characteristics of the visual system. Reviewing the relevant literature in visual psychophysics and visual neuroscience we propose here a three-stage model of directionality bias in visuospatial functioning. We call this model the 'Perception-Action-Laterality' (PAL) hypothesis. We analyzed the research findings for a wide range of visuospatial tasks, showing that there are two major directionality trends in perceptual preference: clockwise versus anticlockwise. It appears these preferences are combinatorial, such that a majority of people fall in the first category demonstrating a preference for stimuli/objects arranged from left-to-right rather than from right-to-left, while people in the second category show an opposite trend. These perceptual biases can guide sensorimotor integration and action, creating two corresponding turner groups in the population. In support of PAL, we propose another model explaining the origins of the biases - how the neurogenetic factors and the cultural factors interact in a biased competition framework to determine the direction and extent of biases. This dynamic model can explain not only the two major categories of biases in terms of direction and strength, but also the unbiased, unreliably biased or mildly biased cases in visuosptial functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- A K M Rezaul Karim
- Envision Research Institute, 610 N. Main St, Wichita, KS 67203, USA; The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh.
| | - Michael J Proulx
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.
| | - Lora T Likova
- The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA.
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13
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Geography, History, and the Left Hand. Laterality 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-801239-0.00008-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Loffing F, Sölter F, Hagemann N, Strauss B. Accuracy of Outcome Anticipation, But Not Gaze Behavior, Differs Against Left- and Right-Handed Penalties in Team-Handball Goalkeeping. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1820. [PMID: 26648887 PMCID: PMC4664728 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2015] [Accepted: 11/11/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Low perceptual familiarity with relatively rarer left-handed as opposed to more common right-handed individuals may result in athletes' poorer ability to anticipate the former's action intentions. Part of such left-right asymmetry in visual anticipation could be due to an inefficient gaze strategy during confrontation with left-handed individuals. To exemplify, observers may not mirror their gaze when viewing left- vs. right-handed actions but preferentially fixate on an opponent's right body side, irrespective of an opponent's handedness, owing to the predominant exposure to right-handed actions. So far empirical verification of such assumption, however, is lacking. Here we report on an experiment where team-handball goalkeepers' and non-goalkeepers' gaze behavior was recorded while they predicted throw direction of left- and right-handed 7-m penalties shown as videos on a computer monitor. As expected, goalkeepers were considerably more accurate than non-goalkeepers and prediction was better against right- than left-handed penalties. However, there was no indication of differences in gaze measures (i.e., number of fixations, overall and final fixation duration, time-course of horizontal or vertical fixation deviation) as a function of skill group or the penalty-takers' handedness. Findings suggest that inferior anticipation of left-handed compared to right-handed individuals' action intentions may not be associated with misalignment in gaze behavior. Rather, albeit looking similarly, accuracy differences could be due to observers' differential ability of picking up and interpreting the visual information provided by left- vs. right-handed movements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Loffing
- Department of Psychology and Society, Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel Kassel, Germany
| | - Florian Sölter
- Department of Psychology and Society, Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel Kassel, Germany ; Department of Sport Psychology, Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Muenster Muenster, Germany
| | - Norbert Hagemann
- Department of Psychology and Society, Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel Kassel, Germany
| | - Bernd Strauss
- Department of Sport Psychology, Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Muenster Muenster, Germany
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Chapelain A, Pimbert P, Aube L, Perrocheau O, Debunne G, Bellido A, Blois-Heulin C. Can Population-Level Laterality Stem from Social Pressures? Evidence from Cheek Kissing in Humans. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0124477. [PMID: 26270648 PMCID: PMC4536016 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0124477] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2014] [Accepted: 03/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite extensive research, the origins and functions of behavioural laterality remain largely unclear. One of the most striking unresolved issues is the fact that laterality generally occurs at the population-level. Why would the majority of the individuals of a population exhibit the same laterality, while individual-level laterality would yet provide the advantages in terms of improving behavioural efficiency? Are social pressures the key factor? Can social pressures induce alignment of laterality between the individuals of a population? Can the effect of social pressures overpass the effect of other possible determining factors (e.g. genes)? We tested this important new hypothesis in humans, for the first time. We asked whether population-level laterality could stem from social pressures. Namely, we assessed social pressures on laterality in an interactive social behaviour: kissing on the cheek as a greeting. We performed observations in 10 cities of France. The observations took place in spots where people of the city meet and greet each other. We showed that: a) there is a population-level laterality for cheek kissing, with the majority of individuals being aligned in each city, and b) there is a variation between populations, with a laterality that depends on the city. These results were confirmed by our complementary data from questionnaires and internet surveys. These findings show that social pressures are involved in determining laterality. They demonstrate that population-level laterality can stem from social pressures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amandine Chapelain
- UMR 6552 Université de Rennes 1—CNRS, Station biologique, 35380, Paimpont, France
- * E-mail:
| | - Pauline Pimbert
- UMR 6552 Université de Rennes 1—CNRS, Station biologique, 35380, Paimpont, France
| | - Lydiane Aube
- UMR 6552 Université de Rennes 1—CNRS, Station biologique, 35380, Paimpont, France
| | - Océane Perrocheau
- UMR 6552 Université de Rennes 1—CNRS, Station biologique, 35380, Paimpont, France
| | | | - Alain Bellido
- UMR 6553 Université de Rennes 1—CNRS, Station biologique, 35380, Paimpont, France
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Ocklenburg S, Beste C, Arning L. Handedness genetics: considering the phenotype. Front Psychol 2014; 5:1300. [PMID: 25426097 PMCID: PMC4227468 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2014] [Accepted: 10/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr-University Bochum Bochum, Germany
| | - Christian Beste
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Dresden University of Technology Dresden, Germany
| | - Larissa Arning
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University Bochum Bochum, Germany
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Zeng W, Shu L, Li Q, Chen S, Wang F, Tao XM. Fiber-based wearable electronics: a review of materials, fabrication, devices, and applications. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2014; 26:5310-36. [PMID: 24943999 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201400633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 646] [Impact Index Per Article: 64.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2014] [Revised: 03/29/2014] [Indexed: 04/14/2023]
Abstract
Fiber-based structures are highly desirable for wearable electronics that are expected to be light-weight, long-lasting, flexible, and conformable. Many fibrous structures have been manufactured by well-established lost-effective textile processing technologies, normally at ambient conditions. The advancement of nanotechnology has made it feasible to build electronic devices directly on the surface or inside of single fibers, which have typical thickness of several to tens microns. However, imparting electronic functions to porous, highly deformable and three-dimensional fiber assemblies and maintaining them during wear represent great challenges from both views of fundamental understanding and practical implementation. This article attempts to critically review the current state-of-arts with respect to materials, fabrication techniques, and structural design of devices as well as applications of the fiber-based wearable electronic products. In addition, this review elaborates the performance requirements of the fiber-based wearable electronic products, especially regarding the correlation among materials, fiber/textile structures and electronic as well as mechanical functionalities of fiber-based electronic devices. Finally, discussions will be presented regarding to limitations of current materials, fabrication techniques, devices concerning manufacturability and performance as well as scientific understanding that must be improved prior to their wide adoption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Zeng
- Institute of Textiles and Clothing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
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18
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La latéralité manuelle préhistorique, les outils et le langage1. REVUE DE PRIMATOLOGIE 2013. [DOI: 10.4000/primatologie.1810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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19
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The Flinders Handedness survey (FLANDERS): A brief measure of skilled hand preference. Cortex 2013; 49:2914-26. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2013.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 189] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2012] [Revised: 12/13/2012] [Accepted: 02/01/2013] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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20
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Schiefenhövel W. Biased semantics forrightandleftin 50 Indo-European and non-Indo-European languages. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2013; 1288:135-52. [DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Evolutionary origins of human handedness: evaluating contrasting hypotheses. Anim Cogn 2013; 16:531-42. [PMID: 23546932 PMCID: PMC3684717 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-013-0626-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2012] [Revised: 01/22/2013] [Accepted: 03/16/2013] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Variation in methods and measures, resulting in past dispute over the existence of population handedness in nonhuman great apes, has impeded progress into the origins of human right-handedness and how it relates to the human hallmark of language. Pooling evidence from behavioral studies, neuroimaging and neuroanatomy, we evaluate data on manual and cerebral laterality in humans and other apes engaged in a range of manipulative tasks and in gestural communication. A simplistic human/animal partition is no longer tenable, and we review four (nonexclusive) possible drivers for the origin of population-level right-handedness: skilled manipulative activity, as in tool use; communicative gestures; organizational complexity of action, in particular hierarchical structure; and the role of intentionality in goal-directed action. Fully testing these hypotheses will require developmental and evolutionary evidence as well as modern neuroimaging data.
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE To determine if the frequency of left-handedness is high in children with spastic cerebral diplegia. DESIGN Case-control study. METHODS One hundred and eleven children with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy and 444 age- and gender-matched controls were studied. The handedness of each child was assigned on the basis of responses to questions on the hand preference for writing and drawing, feeding and throwing a ball. The data were analysed by conditional logistic regression and computing the odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals for left handedness. RESULTS Of the 111 children with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, 45 were left-handed, while 13 of 444 normal children were left-handed. The odds ratio for left-handedness in children with diplegic cerebral palsy as compared to normal children was 27.33 (95% CI = 11.63, 64.25). CONCLUSION The study shows that left-handedness is very frequently encountered in children with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ki Rui Lin
- Paediatric Orthopaedic Service, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal 576 104, Karnataka, India
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23
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Previtali P, Rinaldi L, Girelli L. Nature or nurture in finger counting: a review on the determinants of the direction of number-finger mapping. Front Psychol 2011; 2:363. [PMID: 22319502 PMCID: PMC3267155 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2011] [Accepted: 11/18/2011] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The spontaneous use of finger counting has been for long recognized as critical to the acquisition of number skills. Recently, the great interest on space–number associations shifted attention to the practice of finger counting itself, and specifically, to its spatial components. Besides general cross-cultural differences in mapping numbers onto fingers, contrasting results have been reported with regard to the directional features of this mapping. The key issue we address is to what extent directionality is culturally mediated, i.e., linked to the conventional reading–writing system direction, and/or biologically determined, i.e., linked to hand dominance. Although the preferred starting-hand for counting seems to depend on the surveyed population, even within the same population high inter-individual variability minimizes the role of cultural factors. Even if so far largely overlooked, handedness represents a sound candidate for shaping finger counting direction. Here we discuss adults and developmental evidence in support of this view and we reconsider the plausibility of multiple and coexistent number–space mapping in physical and representational space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Previtali
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca Milano, Italy
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24
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Berger SE, Friedman R, Polis MC. The role of locomotor posture and experience on handedness and footedness in infancy. Infant Behav Dev 2011; 34:472-80. [DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2011.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2010] [Revised: 02/22/2011] [Accepted: 05/12/2011] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
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Murray DR, Trudeau R, Schaller M. On the origins of cultural differences in conformity: four tests of the pathogen prevalence hypothesis. PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN 2011; 37:318-29. [PMID: 21307175 DOI: 10.1177/0146167210394451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 165] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
What are the origins of cultural differences in conformity? The authors deduce the hypothesis that these cultural differences may reflect historical variability in the prevalence of disease-causing pathogens: Where pathogens were more prevalent, there were likely to emerge cultural norms promoting greater conformity. The authors conducted four tests of this hypothesis, using countries as units of analysis. Results support the pathogen prevalence hypothesis. Pathogen prevalence positively predicts cultural differences in effect sizes that emerge from behavioral conformity experiments (r=.49, n=17) and in the percentage of the population who prioritize obedience (r=.48, n=83). Pathogen prevalence also negatively predicted two indicators of tolerance for nonconformity: within-country dispositional variability (r=-.48, n=33) and the percentage of the population who are left-handed (r=-.73, n=20). Additional analyses address plausible alternative causal explanations. Discussion focuses on plausible underlying mechanisms (e.g., genetic, developmental, cognitive).
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Affiliation(s)
- Damian R Murray
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
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26
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Van der Elst W, Hurks PPM, Wassenberg R, Meijs CJC, Van Boxtel MPJ, Jolles J. On the association between lateral preferences and pregnancy/birth stress events in a nonclinical sample of school-aged children. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2010; 33:1-8. [DOI: 10.1080/13803391003757825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wim Van der Elst
- a Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology , Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNS), Maastricht Brain and Behavior Institute, and European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University , Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Petra P. M. Hurks
- b Department of Neuropsychology & Psychopharmacology , Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University , Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Renske Wassenberg
- c Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC) , Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Celeste J. C. Meijs
- a Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology , Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNS), Maastricht Brain and Behavior Institute, and European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University , Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Martin P. J. Van Boxtel
- a Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology , Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNS), Maastricht Brain and Behavior Institute, and European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University , Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Jelle Jolles
- a Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology , Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNS), Maastricht Brain and Behavior Institute, and European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University , Maastricht, The Netherlands
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Lucena NMGD, Soares DDA, Soares LMDMM, Aragão PORD, Ravagni E. Lateralidade manual, ocular e dos membros inferiores e sua relação com déficit de organização espacial em escolares. ESTUDOS DE PSICOLOGIA (CAMPINAS) 2010. [DOI: 10.1590/s0103-166x2010000100001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Este estudo teve por objetivos: 1) verificar se existe associação entre lateralidade manual, ocular e dos membros inferiores e déficit de organização espacial em escolares; 2) categorizar as variações de lateralidade nesta população. A amostra foi constituída de 400 crianças na faixa etária de 6 a 10 anos de escolas públicas e privadas da cidade de João Pessoa (PB). A lateralidade e a organização espacial foram avaliadas, respectivamente, por meio do Harris Test of Lateral Dominance e da Bateria de Piaget-Head. Os resultados evidenciaram 23 tipos de lateralidade mão-olho-pé, observando-se maior percentual (48,75%) de destralidade completa (dominância manual, ocular e dos membros inferiores direita). Houve associação significativa (p<0,05) entre sinistralidade completa e déficit de organização espacial. Os resultados atentam para a importância de se inserirem no cotidiano escolar programas de estimulação motora voltados à lateralidade e à organização espacial das crianças, como forma de prevenir distorções no seu processo de aprendizagem.
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Suzuki K, Ando J, Satou N. Genetic effects on infant handedness under spatial constraint conditions. Dev Psychobiol 2009; 51:605-15. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.20395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Lynch A, Lee HM, Bhat A, Galloway JC. No stable arm preference during the pre-reaching period: a comparison of right and left hand kinematics with and without a toy present. Dev Psychobiol 2008; 50:390-8. [PMID: 18393280 DOI: 10.1002/dev.20297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Adult hand preference emerges from complex developmental changes in arm and hand use during childhood. Recent reports have highlighted the importance of understanding arm and hand use during the first year of life including the period before reach onset. This longitudinal study tested the hypothesis that significant right-left differences exist in pre-reaching arm movements. We examined right and left hand kinematics from 13 healthy infants during trials with and without a toy present from 8 weeks of age through the week of reach onset. Significant right-left differences were found, however there was no clear pattern within a condition or across conditions. Without a toy present, the right hand moved faster, yet ended further from midline, and displayed more movements during the Late phase compared to other phases. With a toy present, the right hand moved longer lengths, yet ended movements further away from the toy. When left and right hand kinematics were combined, previous findings of right hand kinematics alone were supported. Although infants begin adapting their pre-reaching kinematics many weeks before reach onset, we did not find evidence of a systematic right--left difference before reach onset in movements with or without a toy present. Our results, coupled with other reports, suggest hand asymmetries begin to emerge over the year following reach onset amid developmental changes both within the infant, and the physical and social environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Lynch
- Infant Motor Behavior Laboratory, Department of Physical Therapy, Biomechanics and Movement Sciences Program, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, USA
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Misra I, Suar D, Mandal MK. How Good People are at Estimating their Own Performance? A Study of the Relationship between Hand Preference and Motor Performance. PSYCHOLOGY AND DEVELOPING SOCIETIES 2008. [DOI: 10.1177/097133360702000106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
This article examines the relationship between the awareness of hand preference and hand and foot performance among right-, left- and mixed-handers (n = 224). The hand preference was assessed using a handedness inventory. Hand and foot performances were measured using rapid index finger or toe tapping. A significant interaction between hand preference and the tapping rate indicated that in left-handers, left tapping was faster than right tapping and in right-handers, right tapping was faster than left tapping regardless of effector, finger or toe. The mixed-handers, however, did not show differences between left and right tapping performance. Correlations between performances were highest between hands or between feet. Also, hand performance was more strongly positively associated to foot performance in the mixed- and left-handers than right-handers. Similar inter-limb performance in mixed-handers tends to implicate inconsistent or undeveloped cerebral lateralisation. The results indicate that self-awareness of the pattern of hand use significantly relates to hand and foot performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Indiwar Misra
- Indiwar Misra, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, West Bengal, India
| | - Damodar Suar
- Damodar Suar, Ph.D., is a Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. He is actively engaged in research in the areas of human cognition, trauma and social issues. He has authored “Psychological Aspects of Polarisation Phenomenon” and edited “Management through Interpersonal Relationships”. He is associate editor of the journal Psychological Studies
| | - Manas K. Mandal
- Manas K. Mandal is a Professor of Psychology at Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Currently he is Director, Defense Institute of Psychological Research, New Delhi. His areas of interest are clinical neuropsychology and human cognition. He has widely published scientific papers in national and international journals. He has edited “Side Bias: A Neuropsychological Perspective”
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Abstract
Two large British databases of handedness assessed by writing hand at 10-11 years of age were analysed by geographical region. Left-handedness was found to vary significantly across regions according to one survey but not the other. In both data sets, left-handed writing was significantly more frequent in England than in Scotland and Wales combined. Possible reasons for this difference are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stuart J Leask
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Nottingham, Duncan Macmillan House, Porchester Road, Nottingham NG3 6AA, UK.
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32
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Abstract
This study examines the (a) lifespan trends, (b) theoretical propositions, (c) factor structure, and (d) congruency among different forms of side bias in an Indian sample (N=3474) using the preference measure of handedness, footedness, eyedness, and earedness. An increase in dextral preference was found in all indices of side bias with increasing age. There were no left-handers among the oldest adults. This trend was not found for footedness, eyedness, and earedness. Females were more right sided than males on all indices of side bias except handedness. The preferential use of limbs stabilised during young adulthood but eye and ear preference did not. Three factors were underlying the formation and maintenance of four forms of side bias. Handedness and footedness constituted one factor, and eyedness and earedness were independent separate factors. The first two had highest association and the last two had lowest congruency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damodar Suar
- Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, West Bengal, India.
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Porac C, Martin WLB. A cross-cultural comparison of pressures to switch left-hand writing: Brazil versus Canada. Laterality 2007; 12:273-91. [PMID: 17454576 DOI: 10.1080/13576500701269462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Attempts to switch left-hand preferences towards the right side are socialisation practices found in many countries (Perelle & Ehrman, 1994). Although researchers acknowledge that pressures against left-hand use contribute to the cross-cultural fluctuations in the prevalence of left- versus right-hand preference, there has been little systematic cross-cultural study of how these pressures are applied, and who are the major agents applying the pressures to change. Our study explored specific rightward conversion practices and the results of these practices among individuals from two countries. One sample of participants was from a culture categorised as formal, Brazil, and the second sample was from Canada, a nonformal culture (Hofstede, 2001). Researchers have argued that prevalence rates of right-handedness should be higher in cultures that value conformity, called formal cultures, and lower among members of nonformal cultures where conformity pressures are lax (Medland, Perelle, De Monte, & Ehrman, 2004). The socialisation practices used to foster a change from the left to the right side are also predicted to differ in frequency and in kind in formal versus nonformal cultural settings. These cultural differences are assumed to result in differences in success rates of the conversion attempts, with formal cultures producing higher numbers of successfully converted right-handers. Our findings indicate that the formal versus nonformal cultural explanation for cross-cultural fluctuations in the prevalence of hand preference types does not account for the characteristics of the rightward conversion experiences reported by participants in the two groups. We propose that hypotheses concerning the effects of cultural differences on hand preference formation be expanded to include possible biological or genetic variance between groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare Porac
- School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, Erie, PA 16563-1501, USA.
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Warren DM, Stern M, Duggirala R, Dyer TD, Almasy L. Heritability and linkage analysis of hand, foot, and eye preference in Mexican Americans. Laterality 2007; 11:508-24. [PMID: 16966240 DOI: 10.1080/13576500600761056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Functional lateralities are of interest due to their relationship with cerebral lateralisation and language development. However, genes influencing sidedness remain elusive. We measured direction and consistency of hand, foot, and eye preference in 584 Mexican-Americans from families participating in the San Antonio Family Diabetes/Gallbladder Study. Using maximum-likelihood-based variance components methods, we estimated weak (.11 <or= h2<or=.17) but significant heritability for foot preference, eye preference, several hand preferences (writing, drawing, throwing, using scissors, using spoon, striking match), and a composite hand preference trait. Self-reported handedness was significantly heritable (h2=.57), whereas hand preference for opening a box or using a toothbrush or knife was not. Many trait pairs had significant genetic correlations, and all had significant environmental correlations. Using genome-wide multipoint linkage screens using 382 highly informative autosomal STR markers, we identified suggestive linkage signals for drawing (LOD 2.10) and writing (LOD 2.00) hand preference on chromosome 12q21-23, in the region flanked by markers D12S1300 and PAH. A suggestive signal (LOD 2.46) for eye preference occurred on chromosome 22pter, near marker D22S420. No obvious candidate genes occur in these regions. Our results indicate that genes are an important component of side preferences, and suggest chromosomal regions for further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diane M Warren
- Department of Genetics, Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, San Antonio, TX 78227-5301, USA.
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35
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Gurd JM, Schulz J, Cherkas L, Ebers GC. Hand preference and performance in 20 pairs of monozygotic twins with discordant handedness. Cortex 2006; 42:934-45. [PMID: 17131600 DOI: 10.1016/s0010-9452(08)70438-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The differences between right (RH) and left (LH) handers reported in the literature on fine motor tasks, has traditionally been interpreted relative to purported functioning of the cerebral hemispheres. However, conclusive evidence for performance differences which are intrinsic to handedness per se is difficult to obtain unless left and right handers are compared who are similar in their genetic and environmental background. The present study therefore, employed a monozygotic (MZ) twin design which minimizes differences in genetic variation between the two groups. Forty female monozygotic twins (20 pairs) were selected on the basis of discordance of writing hand. Their laterality preferences were assessed and they were tested for differences on hand performance tasks (dot filling, finger tapping, and peg moving). The results revealed that on the hand and foot preference inventories, the right-handers were more strongly lateralized than their left-handed sisters, and that the left-handers had greater variation in their laterality scores. There were substantial correlations between preference and performance scores. The analyses not only revealed the obvious strong main effects of writing hand on performance tasks, but interaction effects of handedness on the peg-moving task. The dot filling task differentiated the writing versus non-writing hand considerably better than either of the other two performance tasks. However, no evidence was found to indicate that twins who wrote with their left hands showed poorer performance than their right-handed twin sisters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer M Gurd
- University Department of Clinical Neurology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
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36
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Peters M, Reimers S, Manning JT. Hand preference for writing and associations with selected demographic and behavioral variables in 255,100 subjects: the BBC internet study. Brain Cogn 2006; 62:177-89. [PMID: 16797814 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2006.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2006] [Revised: 04/21/2006] [Accepted: 04/25/2006] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
In an Internet study unrelated to handedness, 134,317 female and 120,783 male participants answered a graded question as to which hand they preferred for writing. This allowed determination of hand preference patterns across 7 ethnic groups. Sex differences in left-handedness were found in 4 ethnic groups, favoring males, while no significant sex differences were found in three of the groups. Prevalence of left-handedness in the largest of the ethnic groups (self-labelled as "White") was comparable to contemporary hand preference data for this group [Gilbert, A. N., & Wysocki, C. J. (1992). Hand preference and age in the United states. Neuropsychologia, 30, 601-608] but the prevalence of left-handedness in individuals >70 years of age was considerably higher in the present study. Individuals who indicated "either" hand for writing preference had significantly lower spatial performance (mental rotation task) and significantly higher prevalence of hyperactivity, dyslexia, asthma than individuals who had clear left or right hand preferences, in support of Crow et al. [Crow, T., Crow, L., Done, D., & Leask, S. (1998). Relative hand skill predicts academic ability: global deficits at the point of hemispheric indecision. Neuropsychologia, 36, 1275-1282]. Similarly, an association of writing hand preference and non-heterosexual orientation was clearest for individuals with "either" writing hand responses. We conclude that contradictions in the literature as to whether or not these variables are linked to handedness stem largely from different definitions of hand preference. Due to a lack of statistical power in most studies in the literature, the "either" hand writing preference group that yielded the most salient results in this study is not normally available for analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Peters
- Department of Psychology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ont., Canada NIG 2W1.
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Carlier M, Stefanini S, Deruelle C, Volterra V, Doyen AL, Lamard C, de Portzamparc V, Vicari S, Fisch G. Laterality in Persons with Intellectual Disability. I—Do Patients with Trisomy 21 and Williams–Beuren Syndrome Differ from Typically Developing Persons? Behav Genet 2006; 36:365-76. [PMID: 16586153 DOI: 10.1007/s10519-006-9048-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2005] [Accepted: 07/02/2005] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Persons with trisomy 21 (T21) and Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS) have different brain abnormalities which may affect manual laterality. We assessed 45 persons with T21 and 34 with WBS (mean age 13) and 81 typically developing children (TD). Manual laterality was assessed with a fifteen-item task administered two times, and Bishop's card-reaching task. We found more left-handers in the T21 group compared to the other two groups. Inconsistent laterality was higher in the two groups with genetic diseases than in the TD group. For Bishop's test, both T21 and WBS participants were less right-oriented than the TD group. They displayed different response patterns in midline crossing when reaching for the cards, but did not display more midline crossing inhibition than the TD group. Is atypical handedness linked to specific genetic syndromes and, more specifically for persons with T21, to the trisomy of some of the genes?
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Affiliation(s)
- Michèle Carlier
- Centre de Recherche PsyCLE, UFR PSE, Université de Provence, Aix en Provence, France.
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Abstract
Hand, eye and foot preferences in Tunisia were examined in relation to age, gender and geographic location. We analyzed 1291 questionnaires from 653 men and 638 women, aged 8 to 74 years. Despite the cultural pressure against the use of the left hand for food-related activities, the overall frequency of left-hand writers (10.9%) was comparable to that found in the Western world. The frequency of left-hand writers was higher for subjects with one left-handed parent, and even higher for subjects with two left-handed parents than for subjects whose parents were right handed. The frequency of left-hand writers dropped to 5.9% in the older age-group; it was found to be higher in Tunis, the largest and most Occidental city, than in other cities, while left-hand eating was lower in the South than in the Center or in the North. The frequency of left-footers also dropped in the older age groups and was higher in Tunis than in other cities. Eye preference, consistency of preferred-hand use, crossed hand-eye laterality, crossed hand-foot laterality and gender-related differences in lateral preferences were all comparable to Western results. These data suggest that lateral preferences are partly influenced by a genetic factor, but that handedness (and to a lesser degree footedness) emerges from the intricate interaction of several factors including genetic and cultural influences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riadh Dahmen
- Laboratoire Cognition et Dévelopment, CNRS, Boulogne, France.
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Leconte P, Fagard J. Influence of object spatial location and task complexity on children's use of their preferred hand depending on their handedness consistency. Dev Psychobiol 2004; 45:51-8. [PMID: 15340974 DOI: 10.1002/dev.20019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The goal of the present study was to compare the use of the preferred versus the nonpreferred hand in children performing two tasks of different levels of complexity, in various positions in space. Right-handed and left-handed consistent children were compared to their inconsistent counterparts. The results showed that the general tendency to use one's preferred hand to grasp an object is more or less pronounced depending on the object's spatial location and the task's complexity. The children used their preferred hand more often even when the object was presented contralaterally, and did so to a greater extent during the more complex task. Inconsistent-handers were more likely to shift to using their nonpreferred hand when the object was presented to this hand's side. Finally, we found that the influence of handedness consistency on hand use for the spatial positions varied with the complexity of the task. These results favor a view of handedness as a dynamic process in which motor preferences interact with task demand, probably through task-related attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pascale Leconte
- Laboratoire Cognition et Développement, CNRS, UMR-8605, 71 avenue Edouard Vaillant, 92774 Boulogne Billancourt Cedex, France.
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