Multiple measures of motor lateralization in human primates (Homo sapiens).

Abstract

Laterality was assessed in 100 human (Homo sapiens) subjects through the use of five measures of motoric behavior in three categories: locomotor, manual, postural. Locomotor measures included leading limb for initiation of walking and whole-body turning. Performance and questionnaire measures were used to assess lateral hand bias. Postural bias was assessed as the weight distribution in quiet standing. Population-level biases on the manual and leading limb measures were to the right; on posture and turning, to the left. Locomotor measures were found to be altered by marching experience. Only the manual measures were correlated. We compare the results with those of nonhuman primate studies that have used similar measures and discuss some patterns of laterality common to human and nonhuman primates.

Asymmetries in postural control and locomotion in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

“…Walking, ascending, descending, and brachiating were the behavioral categories considered for locomotion, and sitting, lying, hanging, and changing postures were the ones associated with postural control. Whereas right-hand preferences in great apes and humans were previously reported for quadrupedal locomotion on a horizontal surface [Cunningham et al, 1989;Day & MacNeilage, 1996;Forsythe & Ward, 1987;Heestand, 1986;Hopkins & de Waal, 1995;Seltzer et al, 1990], one would expect preferences to emerge in more individuals in the case of climbing or walking on an incline (ascending and descending), as in other restrictive behaviors, since they involve starting from a more unstable position, which requires more balance and support control. Because going over an obstacle, descending to a lower level, and simply walking horizontally may require very different forms of muscular coordination, as they do in humans [Carpenter et al, 1998], the direction of the asymmetry in ascending and descending would not necessarily be the same as in walking.…”

“…The relevance of this is that hand preference in a specific task clearly could be intensified or even changed by a preexisting stable preference when one or another posture is adopted. In fact, lower-limb preferences in purely postural behaviors have been observed in several species of mammal, including bovines [Albright & Arave, 1997;Lane & Phillips, 2004;Phillips et al, 2003] and humans [Day & MacNeilage, 1996;Seltzer et al, 1990]. For example, in humans Seltzer et al [1990] found a group tendency in 100 individuals to distribute their body weight toward the left when standing, but only individual differences when turning around.…”

“…motor asymmetries, and serve as a starting point for comparative studies on the evolution of brain organization in human and nonhuman primates [Seltzer et al, 1990]. Indeed, some authors have hypothesized that postural control is an important factor in explaining the origin of manual laterality in nonhuman primates [MacNeilage et al, 1987] and the early hominids [Calvin, 1983].…”

“…Studies in captivity with lemurs (Varecia variegate) [Forsythe & Ward, 1987], orangutans (Pongo pigmaeus) [Cunningham et al, 1989;Heestand, 1986], gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) [Heestand, 1986], chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) [Heestand, 1986], and bonobos (Pan paniscus) [Hopkins & de Waal, 1995], as well as human studies [Day & MacNeilage, 1996;Seltzer et al, 1990], have provided evidence of group-level right preferences in the upper limb when initiating quadruped locomotion in all these species (except lemurs [Forsythe & Ward, 1987]). However, two studies in wild chimpanzees [Marchant & McGrew, 1996;McGrew & Marchant, 2001] did not report asymmetries in the leading limb.…”

Περιστροφική Κίνηση Με Δοκιμασίες Προτίμησης Και Επίδοσης Σε Δεξιόχειρα Και Μη Δεξιόχειρα Παιδιά Χρονικής Ηλικίας Τριών Έως Έξι Ετών

“…Στον ανθρώπινο πληθυσμό έχει μελετηθεί σε ενήλικες (Bestaven, Guillaud, & Cazalets, 2012;Bracha, Seitz, Otemaa, & Glick, 1987;Bradshaw & Bradshaw, 1988;Gordon, Busdiecker, & Bracha, 1992;Seltzer, Forsythe, & Ward, 1990; Tops, Wijers, Koch, & Korf, 2006), ενώ ελάχιστες είναι οι έρευνες που έχουν πραγματοποιηθεί σε παιδιά (Day & Day, 1997;Gospe, Mora, & Glick, 1990). Λόγω του ότι η περιστροφική κίνηση αντανακλά την ντοπαμίνεργικη δραστηριότητα στον εγκέφαλο, έχει επίσης εξεταστεί σε ανθρώπους με ψυχικές διαταραχές που πιθανόν να σχετίζονται με τη ντοπαμινική νευροχημεία (Bracha, 1987(Bracha, , 1991Bracha, Lyden, & Khansarinia, 1989;Bracha, Shults, Glick, & Kleinman, 1987;Lyon & Satz, 1991;Schneider, Calhoun, & Crosby, 1968).…”