HAND PREFERENCE IN SCHOOL-CHILDREN

A 32-item hand-preference inventory was administered to 522 school children in Grades 4 through 8. The factor structure of this inventory was essentially the same as that found in previous work with adults, indicating separate factors relating to skilled and unskilled hand performance, and minor factors relating to the use of baseball bats and winding watches. In general, more boys than girls were left-handed. Only minor changes with age occurred, and most of these were the result of changes in degree of preference rather than changes in direction of preference. It is argued that hand preference inventories can reliably be used with primary school children, and that they may provide an excellent tool for investigating important neuropsychological issues.