Ryan Cleveland
Brain Awareness Week
Individual Pro-Statement

Our question pertains to the age-old "left brain, right brain" principals and what role each
separate hemisphere plays in the creative process. Does one side favor creativity over the other?

The first article I found on the subject was by Leslie J. Rogers entitled, Seeking the Right Answers About Right Brain - Left Brain. in this article, she claims that the belief that left handed people are right brained and therefore more creative is false. She asserts that human brains were once thought to be unique in the sense that the two hemispheres of our brain are not identical, an occurrence known as brain lateralization. Her research indicates that you can't draw conclusions about a person's level of intelligence or creativity based on their hand preference, as it varies from one task to another much more so than does the lateralization of the brain itself.

The second article I visited on the subject was called Left Hand, Left Brain: The Plot Thickens, by Carolyn Asbury. Her work indicates that left and right handedness is genetically determined, contrary to previous longstanding beliefs. However, this leads me to question whether or not she is suggesting that a person's creativity and intelligence is thereby determined genetically as well.

The third and final article I read on this subject was one by Dennis Kinney, Steven Pritzker and Ruth Louise Richards entitled Creativity, Talents, and Skills -- The Dana Guide. Their research into the subject suggests that it is wrong to believe that one individual side of the brain is exclusive to creativity alone. In fact, when recent right brain/left brain tests have been conducted, it becomes apparent that both hemispheres of the brain work to perform tasks that were once thought to be limited to one side alone.

- Ryan Cleveland

References:

- Rogers, Leslie J. "Seeking the Right Answers About Right Brain-Left Brain" The Dana Foundation October 21, 2003 www.dana.org
-Asbury, Carolyn "Left Hand, Left Brain: The Plot Thickens" The Dana Foundation October 1, 2005 www.dana.org
-Kinney, Dennis Pritzker, Steven R. Louise Richards, Ruth "Creativity, Talents, and Skills -- The Dana Guide" The Dana Foundation November 2007 www.dana.org