A popular neuromyth is that the left side of the brain is the analytical, orderly side, and the right side is about intuition and creativity—and, more, that each person is either more right-brained or left-brained. This is also called the “hemispheric dominance theory.” This is based loosely on science: “The right hemisphere and art became linked … and, because [the idea] had great appeal, the association came into vogue and became a popular belief” (Zaidel). However, these notions grossly oversimplify the actual science, to the point of nonsense. In reality, most functions involve both sides of the brain.
In spite of this, you can find tests all over the web claiming to tell you which side of your brain is dominant. I decided to give one a try out of curiosity. The one I chose is at Psychtests.com. I took their test and my results had me almost solidly centered at 54 on a 0 to 100 scale. Was the test valid? Well, this was one of the questions on it:
In case you aren’t aware, bespoke fashion is drastically more expensive than “off-the-rack” clothes. And, realistically, most people (in developed nations, anyway) will never have a garment made for them (aside from clothes made by their parents or grandparents—do people do that anymore?), with the possible exception of a wedding dress or a costume. Other questions were also poorly written, and overall the quiz is trash. (Of course such short internet quizzes are generally as useless as they are popular, but that’s another conversation.)
So, where does the science come in? It’s a fact that different parts of the brain are responsible for different functions. For example, “there are areas of the right half of the brain that control movement of the left arm and leg (and vice versa).” In addition, “damage to the front part of the brain is linked with reduced motivation, difficulty planning, and impaired creativity,” so creativity and brain function are clearly related (Shmerling). However, it’s a far cry from these specifics to the notion that creativity is based in one half and logic in the other.
As for whether one side can be described as stronger or more dominant than another: in a 2013 study that analyzed brain scans of more than 1,000 people, “analyses suggest that an individual brain is not ‘left-brained’ or ‘right-brained’” (Nielsen et al.). Intriguingly, Aberg et al. note that “the ability to combine remote concepts into novel and useful ideas…depend[s] on associative processing in the right hemisphere,” and this ability is a key part of creativity. Their study also showed that “relatively less dopamine function in the right hemisphere boosts creativity by releasing constraining effects of dopamine on remote associations,” strengthening the role for the right hemisphere in this aspect of creativity. But the full story is clearly deeply complex—and certainly not something that can be determined by a quick and poorly designed web quiz. Though, it does raise interesting questions about the role of medications that influence dopamine levels in altering creativity. This article relating to creativity, which contains links to relevant studies, is worth a read if you want to know more on that topic.
A greater concern is that assigning creativity to one side of the brain and logic to another is problematic in the same way that the notion of learning styles and fixed mindsets are. It suggests that there is a fixed physical, biological constraint on ability. There are plenty of sources that talk about how you can build your artistic side, and certainly creativity (or analytical ability) can be enhanced, but going in with a fixed mindset related to your levels of creativity or logic based on your brain will be limiting. It’s the sort of logic people use when they say, “Oh, I’m so right-brained, I just can’t focus on getting my bills paid on time.” In fact, organization around bill paying is something we can all figure out, even if it is harder for some than others—and of course if someone has a problem focusing, they may have other issues for which they can get help.
There is also a related issue worth noting: Hemispheric dominance is sometimes used to explain dyslexia. According to the theory, letters are stored in different sides of the brain, and if the brain doesn’t develop properly, “one hemisphere’s perceptions could intrude on the other.” This theory has been disproven, but it is still used to sell products and training related to dyslexia (Denton). This is particularly concerning both because it’s a waste of effort and funds, and because it can distract families from therapies that actually work.
It’s important as faculty for us to be aware of pseudoscientific neuromyths like these, both so that we don’t spread them and so we can help protect our students from their effects. For this neuromyth, I tend to think a simple assurance that the brain is far more complicated than the right brain/left brain dichotomy suggests will be enough, but if they want more information or need more convincing, you could either share this video or the Psychology Today article linked above, or both.
Sources
Aberg, Kristoffer C. et al. “The ‘Creative Right Brain’ Revisited: Individual Creativity and Associative Priming in the Right Hemisphere Relate to Hemispheric Asymmetries in Reward Brain Function.” Cerebral Cortex, vol. 27, no 10, pp. 4946-4959, 2017. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhw288. PMID: 27655932.
Denton, Carolyn A. “Physical Exercise and Movement-Based Interventions for Dyslexia,” Perspectives on Language and Literacy, Winter 2011,
Nielsen, Jared et al. “An Evaluation of the Left-Brain vs. Right-Brain Hypothesis with Resting State Functional Connectivity Magnetic Resonance Imaging,” PLOS ONE, vol. 8, no. 8, 2013, e71275. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0071275
Shmerling, Robert G. “Right Brain/Left Brain, Right?” Harvard Health Blog, Nov. 8, 2019, https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/right-brainleft-brain-right-2017082512222
Zaidel, Dahlia W. “Chapter 1 – Split-brain, the Right Hemisphere, and Art: Fact and Fiction,” Progress in Brain Research, vol. 204, 2013, pp 3-17, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-63287-6.00001-4.
Note: Many thanks to Dr. Kim Gerecke of Randolph Macon University for generously agreeing to review this article for me. Any errors are mine.
