4 ms·

I'm sure like many left-handers here, my right hand is nearly as dexterous as my left. Writing is the only thing I can do with left which I cannot do with righ

I'm sure like many left-handers here, my right hand is nearly as dexterous as my left. Writing is the only thing I can do with left which I cannot do with right; other tasks are either equally natural or just a little awkward but still effective. But some right-handers who have been forced to (by breaking an arm for example) can learn to write with the left hand. I have to assume they could learn to be more ambidexterous if they were motivated. It almost seems more like a cultural (see/copy) behavior to be right-only handed. Left-handers may have an inclination to do some things with the left hand, but we also grow up in a world of right-hand designed products. As for the "handedness" of feet, eyes, ears, etc., I also suspect that has more to do with our patterns of hand use. I'm right-eared probably because I hold my phone in my right hand so my left hand is free to do fine motor tasks. It's not because I prefer to listen with my right ear. I'm also somewhat left-footed because I tend to carry heavy things in my right arm; so my right leg is busy supporting the extra weight as I step up on a step with the left. I doubt any/many of these studies have been large or thorough enough to really learn anything meaningful about handedness and its related effects.

deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
aorloff 2y ago
I am a lefty for small motor skills (like writing and eating) and a righty for large motor skills (like throwing a ball or swinging a bat)
- onjectic 2y ago
  Seems like the most useful would be the other way around.
  - Cousin-ITT 2y ago
    batting left handed often gives an advantage over right handed pitchers, as well as putting the left-handed batters a step or two closer to first base
lloeki 2y ago
> I'm also somewhat left-footed because I tend to carry heavy things in my right arm; so my right leg is busy supporting the extra weight as I step up on a step with the left. As a skateboarder that regularly teach the basic ropes of skateboarding I noticed that footedness (giving you stance) has little to no relationship with handedness.
Tor3 2y ago
I'm the same, just mirrored.. I'm technically right-handed, but my left hand works as well as the right one for stuff that I haven't exclusively trained my right hand to do (or the left one, for that matter, as far as the right hand is concerned). So I can't write with my left hand (except that I can mirror-write, especially if I write with my right hand at the same time. Apparently Leonardo Da Vinci used his left hand when he mirror-wrote, and his right hand when he didn't. Read that somewhere).
- Al-Khwarizmi 2y ago
  I'm also like that. When I was a child (not sure what age), I would take two pencils and write one line with the left hand, and the next with the right, indistinctly. But my school teachers said I should choose one and stick to it (not sure if that would still be advised today). I really had no preference so my mother advised me to choose the right, as it would give me less trouble due to everything being designed for right-handers, etc. A reasonable advice. I did so, and now I wouldn't be able to write with my left hand, but when I take up a new activity, it's still basically arbitrary. For example, I started playing golf recently, and I deliberately chose the right-handed way for the same reasons as for writing (it's easier to find right-handed clubs, etc.) but I could have chosen the opposite and I suppose my skill would be the same, initially there is no option that looks more "natural" than the other for my body. And with trivial things where I didn't choose consciously, sometimes I'm told I do them as a left-hander, e.g. I stir tea counterclockwise. I'm a fountain pen aficionado and I would have liked my son to enjoy my fountain pens someday, but he's a clear left-hander, so he probably won't :)
tgv 2y ago
About feet... I was forced to write right-handed at primary school. I can't write with left, but I'm ambidextrous. At work, I've got my mouse to the left, at home to the right. There's an 'inventory' if you want to check, the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory: https://brainmapping.org/shared/Edinburgh.php https://brainmapping.org/shared/Edinburgh.php Anyway, back on topic. I play musical keyboards, so that definitely helps being ambidextrous. But I also play classical organ, and my feet have no preference. Left is just as agile (or clumsy) as right. But that's not different for right-handed organists. So at least in that case, there doesn't seem to be a connection between handedness and feetedness. This is of course just some observations, but it is rather obvious that we do use our legs/feet a lot, and almost always in a symmetrical fashion. And for turning corners while running and such, we need to be able to rely on strength and agility in both.
jedberg 2y ago
> But some right-handers who have been forced to (by breaking an arm for example) can learn to write with the left hand. I'm right handed and taught myself to write left handed out of boredom. In college I would just start taking notes with my left hand in classes where they prof conveyed information slowly enough that I had the time to do it. It was a good way to stay engaged and awake. As a consequence I can still today, 25 years later, write with both hands (although to be fair, my handwriting is terrible with both hands so that could be why it's hard to tell the difference).

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

aorloff 2y ago

I am a lefty for small motor skills (like writing and eating) and a righty for large motor skills (like throwing a ball or swinging a bat)

onjectic 2y ago
Seems like the most useful would be the other way around.
- Cousin-ITT 2y ago
  batting left handed often gives an advantage over right handed pitchers, as well as putting the left-handed batters a step or two closer to first base

lloeki 2y ago

> I'm also somewhat left-footed because I tend to carry heavy things in my right arm; so my right leg is busy supporting the extra weight as I step up on a step with the left. As a skateboarder that regularly teach the basic ropes of skateboarding I noticed that footedness (giving you stance) has little to no relationship with handedness.

Tor3 2y ago

I'm the same, just mirrored.. I'm technically right-handed, but my left hand works as well as the right one for stuff that I haven't exclusively trained my right hand to do (or the left one, for that matter, as far as the right hand is concerned). So I can't write with my left hand (except that I can mirror-write, especially if I write with my right hand at the same time. Apparently Leonardo Da Vinci used his left hand when he mirror-wrote, and his right hand when he didn't. Read that somewhere).

Al-Khwarizmi 2y ago
I'm also like that. When I was a child (not sure what age), I would take two pencils and write one line with the left hand, and the next with the right, indistinctly. But my school teachers said I should choose one and stick to it (not sure if that would still be advised today). I really had no preference so my mother advised me to choose the right, as it would give me less trouble due to everything being designed for right-handers, etc. A reasonable advice. I did so, and now I wouldn't be able to write with my left hand, but when I take up a new activity, it's still basically arbitrary. For example, I started playing golf recently, and I deliberately chose the right-handed way for the same reasons as for writing (it's easier to find right-handed clubs, etc.) but I could have chosen the opposite and I suppose my skill would be the same, initially there is no option that looks more "natural" than the other for my body. And with trivial things where I didn't choose consciously, sometimes I'm told I do them as a left-hander, e.g. I stir tea counterclockwise. I'm a fountain pen aficionado and I would have liked my son to enjoy my fountain pens someday, but he's a clear left-hander, so he probably won't :)

tgv 2y ago

About feet... I was forced to write right-handed at primary school. I can't write with left, but I'm ambidextrous. At work, I've got my mouse to the left, at home to the right. There's an 'inventory' if you want to check, the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory: https://brainmapping.org/shared/Edinburgh.php https://brainmapping.org/shared/Edinburgh.php Anyway, back on topic. I play musical keyboards, so that definitely helps being ambidextrous. But I also play classical organ, and my feet have no preference. Left is just as agile (or clumsy) as right. But that's not different for right-handed organists. So at least in that case, there doesn't seem to be a connection between handedness and feetedness. This is of course just some observations, but it is rather obvious that we do use our legs/feet a lot, and almost always in a symmetrical fashion. And for turning corners while running and such, we need to be able to rely on strength and agility in both.

jedberg 2y ago

> But some right-handers who have been forced to (by breaking an arm for example) can learn to write with the left hand. I'm right handed and taught myself to write left handed out of boredom. In college I would just start taking notes with my left hand in classes where they prof conveyed information slowly enough that I had the time to do it. It was a good way to stay engaged and awake. As a consequence I can still today, 25 years later, write with both hands (although to be fair, my handwriting is terrible with both hands so that could be why it's hard to tell the difference).