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from the what-percentage-of-people-are-right-handed? dept.
The experts assume that one reason for this preference is that emotions are primarily processed in the right hemisphere of the brain, which is linked to the left side of the body. The team led by lead author Julian Packheiser reports in the journal Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews on 26 June 2019.
International researchers have been investigating since 1960 whether and why people have a preferred side when cradling a baby. Some studies have demonstrated a preference, others have not. "In order to explain the effect, we looked for all of the studies we could find on this topic," says Julian Packheiser. The Bochum-based researchers included 40 studies in their analysis.
They ultimately found that between 66 and 72 per cent of all people hold an infant with their left arm. For right-handed people, the figure is even higher at 74 per cent, while it is only 61 per cent for left-handed people. The ratio is similar for men and women: 64 per cent of all men and 73 per cent of all women hold a baby with their left arm. "There may, of course, be links between gender and handedness," explains Packheiser. After all, men are 23 per cent more likely to be left-handed than women. "Unfortunately, this link has not been considered in any study," says the researcher.
Julian Packheiser, Judith Schmitz, Gesa Berretz, Marietta Papadatou-Pastou, Sebastian Ocklenburg. Handedness and sex effects on lateral biases in human cradling: Three meta-analyses. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 2019; 104: 30 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.06.035
(Score: 3, Insightful) by ShadowSystems on Sunday July 21 2019, @03:48AM (5 children)
You hold the baby over your heart so it can feel & hear the soothing rhythm. It calms them, soothes them, & keeps them mostly pacified.
Now give me a cookie or I'll fingerpaint on my crib walls with the contents of my diaper.
=-)P
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 21 2019, @03:58AM (2 children)
I think it is because most people are right handed. Therefore, they naturally hold the baby in their left arm because that leaves the right arm free to do whatever needs to be done. The left-handed people then hold the baby in the left arm because they are modeling what they see others doing. But, they do it at a lower rate because they ultimately discover the utility of having their good hand free.
(Score: 3, Funny) by legont on Sunday July 21 2019, @04:08AM
I think it's because in most cars people steer with left hand while doing interesting stuff with the right one.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 21 2019, @04:31PM
It's easier for a right hander to hold a baby with the left hand while feeding the baby with a bottle using the right hand. Or putting mittens/caps etc on the baby with the right hand. Or open doors etc. Or defend the baby from harm.
I guess this is one of those "publish or perish" filler research. They might even come to the AC's conclusion some years or decades later once they're done publishing enough crap.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Arik on Sunday July 21 2019, @04:22AM
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday July 21 2019, @05:46AM
s/ or / and /
My rights don't end where your fear begins.