Interesting things about left-handed people: Smarter than normal people?

In the minds of many people, left-handed people are always considered intelligent and have high IQs. Bill Gates, Obama,... are all left-handed, which makes people even more confident.

Accordingly, scientists have been studying human handedness for more than a century, and the discoveries have revealed a lot about how the human brain may work differently.

For a long time, many sources still believe that left-handed people always have a certain strength and talent. But is that really the case?

The brain of a left-handed person is different from that of a right-handed person

In fact, the brains of left-handed people are different from those of right-handed people.

In particular, according to Mr. Eric Zillmer, professor of neuropsychology at Drexel University, left-handed people are less likely to experience one-sided brain bias than right-handed people.

Brain bias is the theory that the human brain is divided into two halves—the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere—each half responsible for its own set of functions.

The left side of the brain is often associated with speaking, writing, arithmetic, language, and grasping abilities, while the right side controls creativity, musical and artistic skills, etc.

If a researcher starts a conversation with you and scans your brain with an fMRI in the process, the left hemisphere (which is linked to language) will typically be brighter than the right hemisphere. That's what researchers have found in most right-handed people — for language-related tasks, the left hemisphere is more active than the right hemisphere.

But scientists have discovered the opposite for most left-handed people.

The right hemisphere of left-handers showed more activity on language tasks. Because left-handers rely less on the left hemisphere, researchers take this to mean they experience less brain bias.

And the left brain and right brain differ not only in terms of language.

A 2010 study on handedness and face perception found that left-handed people use both hemispheres of the brain when looking at a face. As for right-handed people, face perception is largely focused on the right hemisphere of the brain.

What does this have to do with levels of creativity?

Zillmer said differences in brain bias may help left-handers think in more novel ways, and thus have a more creative advantage.

Creativity may come more easily to left-handed people

Perhaps the most convincing studies of the link between handedness and creativity are studies of people with high levels of schizotypy – that is, personality traits that resemble schizophrenia but are not as severe. equal.

In the early 2000s, multiple research groups found an interesting link between highly creative people — such as professional musicians and visual artists — and high levels of schizophrenia.

Furthermore, people with overt schizophrenia also showed increased right-hemisphere activity for tasks normally performed by the left hemisphere - similar to what is seen in people with schizophrenia. left-handed and ambidextrous.

Therefore, if people with high levels of schizotypy are more creative, it follows that left-handed people may also be more creative than right-handed people. Of course, more research is needed to confirm this inference.

It's worth noting that the right hemisphere of the brain is associated with analytical thinking — that is, the ability to think creatively about some unique solution to a specific problem. So if left-handers tend to tap that part of the brain more often, it also means they tend to solve problems more creatively.

The ability of left-handers to be more creative may also be partly due to their constant need to adapt to a world that was built for right-handers.

Katina Bajaj, a clinical psychology researcher and co-founder of the company Daydreamers, said this unintentionally creates opportunities for left-handed people to use their imaginations more often, thereby helping them raise their children. nurture creativity.

"Our creative brains come into play when we engage in new, unfamiliar experiences," Bajaj says. Because left-handers constantly have to adjust to a world dominated by right-handers, So they have to use their imagination more, and over time they become more imaginative and creative."

Why are there left-handed people?

Researchers don't know exactly why about 10% of the population is left-handed. But some studies have offered suggestions on how and when to determine dominant hand.

In one study, researchers found that they could reasonably predict a child's tendency to use their dominant hand by observing which hand they preferred to move while still in the womb. Mom.

And a more recent 2020 study found that handedness is at least partly genetic and may be determined entirely by genetic factors.

But environmental factors can't be ignored, Zillmer said. For example, a child whose parents are left-handed may also become left-handed by imitation, regardless of which hand they preferred to move while in the womb.

And the same goes for creativity: "Many studies show that some people are born with higher levels of openness than others," Bajaj says. "In my opinion, the more we cultivate creativity, the more conditions it has to develop."

After all, if you want to become more creative, practice. If you want to use your left hand more often, practice. When you have enough willpower, your brain will be completely yours to control.

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