What do Lady Gaga, Christopher Nolan, or Mozart have in common? The answer lies in their everyday actions: they are (or were) all left-handed, like only 10% of the population. But does that change anything? Well yes. According to several studies, left-handers have an advantage, especially when launching into certain fields…
Unsuspected potential among left-handers
It is a fact proven by science, left-handed people have a definite advantage in creativity. This is explained by surprising cognitive and physiological particularities.
Thus, left-handers have a distinct brain organization. Unlike right-handers who develop their left hemisphere more (that of logic and analysis), left-handers activate their right hemisphere more. A hemisphere where intuition, emotions… and creative sense reside.
A study published in the journal Perceptual and Motors Skills conducted with 192 participants (96 left-handed and 96 right-handed) confirmed this approach. In it, left-handers, especially women, obtained better scores on creativity tests. This doesn’t mean you’re necessarily destined to be an artist if you’re left-handed. But that you have the ability to think about the world differently, which is a great asset.
The obligation to constantly adapt
In addition to the functioning of the brain, another explanation also supports this personality trait. The fact that left-handers are more creative might also be due in part to how they constantly have to adapt to a world designed for right-handers. They would therefore be obliged to show imagination much more often than others, and this has been the case since childhood.
“Our creative brain is engaged when we have new and unusual experiences”explains Katina Bajaj, researcher in clinical psychology, in Business Insider on this subject. “As left-handers constantly navigate a world that requires them to think differently, they rely more on their imagination, making it easier to access over time.”
Ultimately, being left-handed doesn’t automatically make you more creative, but as your brain develops and adapts, you can adopt a more creative way of thinking.