Essay Laboratory: Left-handedness and Experiment

Based on the ten sources for psychological myths I believe that Exaggeration of a Kernel of Truth contributed to the continual belief of the myth Some People Are Left-Brained, Others Are Right-Brained. There are studies that prove that one hemisphere of the brain is better at certain abilities than the other (Lilienfeld et al.). I believe when they began their study into the different sides of the brain, the researchers began to think that some people used one half more than the other because each side did tasks differently and each individual within the study was different as well. The most extreme evidence that has been found is from a surgery called “split brain” created by Roger Sperry where the nerve tracts that connect the hemispheres

Centuries ago, the Catholic Church declared that left-handed people were servants of the devil. The word "left" comes from the Old English word meaning "weak" and "worthless." In the 1600s in Europe, lefties were burned at the stake for alleged witchcraft and sorcery.

Mead & Hampson (1996) developed a study involving the divided visual field paradigm and a phonological rhyme/non-rhyme task to test the speed and accurateness of either side of the brain. This study was used to investigate functional asymmetry between the left and right hemispheres in phonological processing. The research was taken out equally on 15 male and 15 females London Metropolitan University students ranging from ages 18 – 35 years old. They were all specifically chosen to be right–handed and had English as their first language thus providing a fair experiment to see whether our left hemisphere (left side of the brain) or the right hemisphere is faster and more accurate. In conclusion using the mean and standard

Both the left and right hemispheres controls their opposite sides of the body. (The left side of the brain controls the right side of the body and the right side of the brain controls the left side of the

The right brain is said to control the left side of the body as well as being the creative and athletic part of the brain. It is the more

So, you might smell colors or see sounds. Women and left handed people are more likely to have Synesthesia. It seems that Synesthesia does run in families, but scientists don’t really know how, but it could be a dominant trait and it might be with the X-chromosome (Melissa Lee Phillips). Some famous people that has Synesthesia include; Mary J. Blige, Marilyn Monroe, John Mayer, Stevie Wonder, and Jimi Hendrix. (Noctem, 2010).

Females are at least twice or more as likely to have TMJ disorders as males

It was expected that the left-handers would learn to use their right hand. Eventually, there came a stigma with being left handed, for both the above reason as well the Bibles apparent preference for the right hand, which some took literally to mean that lefties are defected or crippled. For decades, lefties suffered persecution as they were forced by their parents and teachers to write with their right hand. Today, though it is accepted in most cultures as normal, studies show that right-handed people tend to be more confident and self-assured, while left-handed people have higher anxiety levels. The difference is not great, but it is definitely there. This is also believed to be due to common phrases that are still used today, which depict anything having to do with the right side as “good,” while left is “bad” (i.e. being in your “right mind” or feeling “left

be of the same ethnicity. Fractionalization is the most common measure used to capture the

Most significantly, the left-brain is often described as being better at: language, logic, critical thinking, numbers, and reasoning (Cherry, 2014). The positive effects of the left sided brain learners are that they can easily and quickly evoke names rather than appearances and express with very few gestures thus evolving much more robust communication patterns. Left sided learners are also highly systematized and and have great time management skills and enjoy creating lists to plot out plans day to day. Left brainers are more likely to thrive in certain careers such as; computer programmers, accounting firms, engineering plants and many more technical career fields.

As a left-hander, I have always wondered what makes us different. As a child it made no sense to me, people telling me I wrote with the ‘wrong hand’ or looking at my hand in amazement asking ‘How do you do that!?!?!’ I always saw it as something to show off, a little peculiarity that made me unique. As I grew older, the challenges got harder. In year two we tried the new game called hockey that looked really fun - only to be told that I had to hold the stick in my right hand, which made me pretty much hopeless to my team. My pencil grip was atrocious, and nobody could properly teach me how to hold it in such a combination where I could see what I was writing but also hold it correctly and comfortably (which I have only learnt this year in year nine). Not to mention the tasks of scissors, white out, dinner etiquette, bumping elbows when writing or eating, not being able to copy sports demonstrations, right-handed desks, and the part that hurt the most, my librarian always telling my class the cruel stories of past treatment to left-handers. But because of my family’s support from a young age, I always saw this small trait as something that made me special. This never changed. The personal hint inspired me to so something with handedness. I was also shocked to find statistics about 6 of the last 12 US presidents, 20% of all MENSA members, and 4 of the 5 original designers of the Mac all left handed. There was obviously something different about left-handers and I

“Being left-handed shows a connection with the devil.” These hurtful words were spoken to me by my first-grade teacher Mrs. Dominguez in 2003.

For thousands of years, there has been evidence of humans’ fascination with handedness, particularly regarding left-handed individuals. In the past, southpaws have been represented as a sign of evil, mental illness, defiance, creative and music ability, and empathy. As a result of these clichés, left-handers, had been alienated in the past. However, in more recent developments, psychologists and neurologists alike have investigated the potential causes of this rare trait, looking to genetics and early childhood development for answers and, more importantly, part of the effects that handedness has on left handers mentally, physically, and socially.

Throughout the history, there are a lot of debates about which is right - handed or left - handed, even ambidextrous better. This issue has been argued and resulted in many sides by not only scientist but also psychologist, because it decides to succeed in life. In the following essay, the benefits and the drawbacks of this problem will be discussed.

By earlier mentioning the stated problems above. The following research questions were listed down by the author: