There has been lots of research into why some people prefer to use their left hand rather than their right and alongside some brain evidence showing differences between the two, some evidence also shows it comes down to a complex collaboration between the social environment and inherited genes.
A paper [2] has been published to say that whether you’re left-handed, right-handed or ambidextrous can be a hint as to how your brain processes emotions.
In the field, it’s been known for a while that left-handed people are more prone to negative emotions and the study shows that they have a greater imbalance in activity when processing emotions in the left and right sides of the brain.
A study published in Pediatrics in 2010 discussed how being left-handed is linked to an increased risk for dyslexia, ADHD, and some mood disorders.
Whilst research hasn’t yet been done to explain why this is the way it is, experts suggest it’s down to the brain’s structure and whether or not the individual has one dominant half of their brain.
Around 30% of left-handed people don’t have one dominant half of their brain and this is more likely to result in learning difficulties and brain disorders.
Left-handed people associate ‘left’ as being a good thing, since they use their left-hand dominantly for activities and since they can’t do as much with their right hand, they associate this as ‘bad.’
A recent study[3] carried out by Daniel Casasanto, a Stanford researcher, asked participants to draw a zebra in the box that represented good things and a panda in the box that represented bad things.
Left-handed people were more likely to put the panda in the right-hand box and the zebra in the left-hand box, showing their association with bad being things on the right.
The American Journal of Psychology published an article in which it was explained that left-handed people are more creative than right-handed people when it comes to certain creative tasks.
Divergent thinking, for example, is one area left-handed people excel in when compared to right-handed people. In addition, the Left-Hander’s club [4] carried out a survey that found that left-handed people were more likely to follow careers in the arts, music, sports, and information technology – proving that the dominant left-hand is the more creative.
Plenty of studies delve into this area and it’s fascinating to see how something as simple as the hand you write with can influence personality, emotion, and even career, and picking up little facts from each study is interesting too. Are you left-handed or right-handed?
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I read somewhere that left-handed people are more likely to be genius and also to die earlier than right-handed people.
Nice one! I made a research about laterality in uni, and people can be left or right not only on their hands, but also on eyes, ears, and feet (obviously). Check which eye you would look through a telescope, or which ear you use to listen to a low volume sound.
I also read that lefties aren't actually more likely to die earlier, it's just a myth. I am left-handed, and it's true I usually associate left with good, but usually unconsciously (I try to reason afterwards). :p
has any research been done on those of us that were left handed for the first 6 yrs of our lives only to be forced to use our right hand upon entering the school system?
They tried that with me I just wrote everything backwards. Lol so I'm a dyslexic left-handed adhd champion. Lol
im lefthanded and i must say, all the four points are true for me.
Interesting... but what about people like me, who were born left-hand but forced to right-handed from the age of four, at Junior school?... The 'Panda-Zebra' - 'Left equals good - exercise, e.g., would result in me putting both in both boxes, as I don't consider one hand superior to the other... I use both hands regularly, e.g. when I worked with two computers on my desk I would operate one with my right hand & the other with my left, both for 'mouse' operation & typing... I also pick up a drink in cup/mug/glass with either hand depending on which is closer... I don't consider myself to get angrier that that anyone else, though I am often accused of making others angry by 'winding them up', partly for fun & partly to ensure I win an argument, which I always saw as business acumen... I conclude that the conclusions above are too simplistic & assume they are an over-simplified précis of a larger study... which begs the question:- Does the complete study include my 'condition' of being a 'partially converted left-hander'?... Would love to hear back... thank, Michael Heavey - or Gwaymoaw P. G-Pi on 'Facebook' [...perhaps my left hand psychologically has a different name - ha!...]