Performance on motor tasks as an indication of increased behavioral asymmetry with advancing age

Comparing left and right hand in line bisection at different ages

“…However, this possible right-hemisphere-left-hand advantage disappears in adulthood and seems to beDownloaded by [Florida Atlantic University] at 13:45 18 November 2014 come left-hemisphere-right-hand advantage in older people. The latter could be explained by a growing right-hand advantage with age due to an increasing clumsiness of the left hand (Mitrushina, Fogel, D'Elia, Uchiyama, & Satz, 1995) or by asymmetric decline of hemispheric functions with age (Goldstein & Shelly, 1981). However, our results in older French people disagree with an observation by Fujii et al (1995), in which older Japanese bisected lines further to the right (with both hands) than did younger adults.…”

Foot Preference Changes Through Adulthood

“…Although behavioural evidence is not conclusive, hem ispheric differences supporting this hypoth esis have been reported for specific aspects of cognition and perception (Fullerton, 1983 ;Goldstein & Shelly, 1981 ;Kaplan, 1980;Klisz, 1978 ;Lapidot, 1988). W ith respect to motor behaviour, there is evidence that with increasing age, right-hand skills appear to be better preserved than left-hand skills (Meudell & Greenhalgh, 1987 ;Mitrushina et al, 1995 ;W eller & Latim er-Sayer, 1985). One might speculate that if ageing affects the decision-m aking process for preference, m ore mixed-footedness would occur with advancing age.…”

Changes in Posed Facial Expression of Emotion Across the Adult Life Span

“…One such theory, that is, the right-hemisphere aging hypothesis (e.g., Albert & Kaplan, 1980;Alden, Harrison, Snyder, & Everhart, 1997;Brown & Jaffe, 1975;Ferron, 1993;Mitrushina, Fogel, D'Elia, Uchiyama, & Satz, 1995;Orbelo, Testa, & Ross, 2004) points to more rapid aging of the right than the left hemisphere. The decline in facial emotional expression accuracy could be interpreted as stemming from the fact that there are selective changes in right-hemisphere functioning, because facial emotional expression has been speculated to be a function of the right hemisphere.…”