How much of handedness is simply a matter of training and experience vs. what you’re born with?
I am mixed-handed. I do some things left-handed, like writing, eating, using my touchscreen, and some other fine-motor activities. But I play sports right-handed (except I throw a Frisbee left-handed). I sometimes wonder if I “should have been” strictly righty or lefty. I can’t simply switch my pen to my right hand and get legible results, or throw a baseball left-handed with any power, but I also wonder if these are skills developed over decades of practice, rather than some innate preference. Sure, handedness might be real, but it’s not so powerful that your opposite hand is useless. (Compare to lobsters, who clearly have one claw designated as the “crusher.”) Is there really that big a difference between the ability of one side vs. the other?
Is handedness mostly a matter of development once a preference is established? Could we all be ambidextrous if we practiced from a young age, just like people can have native proficiency in more than one language if they start early enough?
Perhaps. I have a friend who, as a child, was forced to use his right hand, which he does for writing and other things, but he still uses his left when eating soup. I also know a cellist who says he is very much left-handed but finds holding the bow with his right hand the natural thing to do as this was the way he was taught.
My mother was 100% lefty, my dad is 100% righty, and I am 100% righty, but my brother was truly ambidextrous as a child almost equal in ability on both sides, but chose to become a righty for whatever reason. He can still bat, golf and kick left handed/footed, but he is much stronger on the right side because that’s what he chose as a child. My maternal grandfather was born left handed and forced to become right handed in school in England. As an adult he could write with his right hand, but not very clearly, although that may have been a result of age as much as anything else.
I’m no expert other than being a lefty myself, but I’d say yes, handedness is innate but sure, you can train to be ambidextrous. People who lose or sustain serious injuries to their “good” hand learn to write and do other stuff with the other. Whether you’ll ever be as good with the non-dominate hand, I don’t know. You can learn to write legibly with your other hand, but will your penmanship ever be as good?
Of course, some of that may be learning to use the hand later in life. I also prefer my right hand for certain things, like using scissors, but I think that’s due to growing up in a righty world. Left-handed scissors were hard to find in school, so I learned with righties.when I started learning guitar I made a conscious choice to play rightie so I’d be able to pick up any guitar and play. I’m a so-so guitarist after messing around with it for 20 years. Would I be a better guitar player now if I had chosen to play leftie? Maybe.
My friend is left handed. When she had her first off spring, she wanted him to be left handed. She would place objects close to his left hand for him to pick them up. It didn’t work. He is a right handed adult today.
We’ve done threads on this before. Handedness is largely innate and it’s important.
There is really no such thing as being ambidextrous - that condition is more accurately called incomplete dominance. If a child does not show a dominant side by around age five or six it’s a sign of developmental issues.
Now, one CAN develop better dexterity in the non-dominant side with practice. But that’s not the same as changing dominance. Years ago, left handers were often made to be righties and it often screwed them up.
Anecdotal evidence: I used to be a pro juggler. Many people assumed I was “ambidextrous”. In fact, I NEVER met a juggler without a strong dominant side. They were just adept through practice.
Point of note (not to LL, but just the thread in general): Phil Michelson, famous left-handed golfer with the nickname “Lefty” is actually right handed.
My information came from courses in sport psychology and motor behavior. The common textbook back in the day was by Magill. I believe it’s been updated.
As an example of how you can learn to use the non-dominant hand, consider hockey. Of the five player (other than the goalie), two have to shoot left-handed: the left-winger and the left defence man.