Table of contentsOrigin of the myth and supporting evidenceEvidence against the mythReferencesThe idea that people might be left-brained and right-brained is ubiquitous: there are 200 million results on Google, the best-selling book by Daniel Pink, a BuzzFeed quiz, even Oprah describes herself as a “right-brained” person. However, there is actually no right-brain or left-brain dominance. The human brain is divided into two hemispheres linked together by the corpus callosum. Depending on the task, there are only locations where more one hemisphere is activated than another. These hemispheres are each assigned tasks that control movements and receive stimuli from the opposite side of our body. In other words, the left hemisphere controls the right side of our body and also receives sensory information from the right side of our body. Our brains are highly interactive and there is a much more complicated exchange than the myth suggests. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In a 2016 study, 78.5% of pre-service teachers who participated agreed with the validity of hemispheric domination even when there have been other recent studies that prove that brain functions require the use of both hemispheres (Dundar & Gunduz, 2016). There is currently no evidence linking hemispheric dominance to learning; however, it is the second most common neuromyth, after learning styles (Dundar and Gunduz, 2016). Additionally, brain-based learning has influenced the way curricula are developed (Society for Neuroscience, 2009) and teachers may unknowingly incorporate many other neuromyths into their pedagogy. The lack of neuroscientific expertise in many educational institutions may lead to the adoption of “brain-based” learning methods, without realizing their pseudo-scientific nature. In fact, people are more likely to believe claims that incorporate marketing buzzwords such as “brain” and “neuroscience” (Lindell & Kidd, 2011). The prevalence of this myth, particularly in the education sector, presents dangers. On the one hand, students may learn material in ways that are not actually effective. Since “right brain/left brain” teaching methods have not been validated, nor any evidence to support them (Bruer, 2002), then it would be completely wrong to adopt “right brain/left brain” teaching. . Using this belief can be restrictive and limiting by thinking that people's abilities and personalities are predicted by a divided point of view. Internalization of this neuromyth could impact people's sense of self-efficacy and could even be the source of self-fulfilling prophecies (Bandura, 1994). Origin of the Myth and Supporting Evidence In the 1800s, pioneers Paul Broca and Carl Wernicke showed that language production and comprehension are governed by two distinct brain regions, known as Broca's area and Wernicke. Broca and Wernicke's study suggests that language is controlled by the left side of the brain. This discovery became the basis for Robert Lewis Stevenson's "Dr." Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" in 1886. He explored the duality of human nature in his work by introducing the idea of ​​a logical left brain in the character of Dr. Jekyll competing with an emotional right brain in the character of Mr. .Hyde (Waters, 2017). At the dawn of the 20th century, the obsession with the brainleft and right brain became relatively quiet until the 1960s thanks to Roger Sperry's split-brain experiments which won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1981. The original study which claimed this myth was created on participants whose brain functions were not at all typical to begin with – its goal was to learn more about epilepsy (Lienhard, 2017). Much of Sperry's original work, which discovered the differences in functioning between the left and right hemispheres, remains valid, but has been extrapolated - the conclusions are taken to the extreme, creating a misunderstanding in thinking that is not not supported by literature and disseminated by popular media: The New York Times Sunday Magazine published an article in 1973 titled “We Are Left-Handed Brains.” or Right-Brained” and the Harvard Business Review published an article in 1976 titled “Plan on the Left and Manage on the Right.” When reputable agencies propagate this myth under the guise of self-improvement, a new theory of psychology emerges that ends up burying the truth in misconceptions. Relatedly, the "performer phenomenon" is a concept introduced by Sperry's student Michael Gazzaniga. In his first experiments, Gazzaniga and his colleagues observed patients when the left and right hemispheres could no longer communicate. They were shown an image in the right visual field which corresponds to the left hemisphere of the brain and they were able to give an explanation. However, when the image was presented in the left visual field, patients could only point to objects similar to the image. Gazzaniga interpreted this by hypothesizing that although the right brain could see the image, it needed the left brain to generate a verbal response, thus characterizing the left hemisphere as "inventive and interpreting", compared to the " truthful and literal right brain” (Gazzaniga, 2015). This statement, without a good understanding of brain processes, can easily be misinterpreted and oversimplified. Sperry (1984) himself warned the public: "...the experimentally observed polarity in right-left cognitive style is an idea in general with which it is very easy to run wild...it is important to remember that both hemispheres in the normal intact brain tend to regularly function closely as a unit. others. Oversimplification of a complex neuroscience process could simply be the result of our human instinct to understand things we don't understand, to characterize ideas, and to adopt simplified narratives despite warnings. There is no perpetual tug of war in the brain: the hemispheres are systems and should be considered as such. Evidence Against the Myth (Nielsen, Zielinski, Ferguson, Lainhart, & Anderson, 2013). This study looked at 3D images of the brains of more than 1,000 people and measured activity in the left and right hemispheres using an MRI scanner. The results showed that both sides of the brain are engaged in cognitive processes, supporting the absence of selective simulation in the brain (Lindell, 2011). One of the most widely held beliefs in the left-brain versus right-brain myth is that creativity is “right-brained.” " brain ". One of the most common and perpetuated ideas is that the right brain is the center of imagination and that "right-brained" people are more creative than their left-brained counterpart. This has been disproved because both sides of the brain are involved in tasks requiring creativity (Runco, 2004, p. 665). The “interpreter phenomenon”, as discussed previously, shows that itIt is naive to describe the left hemisphere as incapable of creativity, especially when logical tasks require creativity and creativity can also be rooted in logical reasoning even when people with creative careers demonstrate greater interaction on both sides. of the brain than those in non-creative professions (Gibson, Folley and Park, 2009). Cerebral lateralization is a multifaceted and continuous process by which different regions of the brain “specialize” the functioning of specific behaviors and cognitive skills. Indeed, the brain has two hemispheres, but they have a complex working relationship and always function with other areas of the brain (Noggle & Hall, 2011). It is important to note that laterization has no relationship to personality traits. Therefore, no one has a completely right or left brain (Sperry, 1961). Lateralized functions of a healthy brain, such as language, can even be rewired in the other hemisphere, especially if the patient is very young. Increased laterization and plasticity are observed both before a child develops the activity and even after the function has begun to develop (Ressel, Wilke, Lidzba, Lutzenberger, & Krägeloh-Mann, 2008) and may continue to live a normal life. Children with brain damage to the left hemisphere are able to continue language development and the damage is undetectable by age 7, suggesting that even when one side is not functioning properly, the other side will “take over” tasks to carry out cognitive processes as a unified system ( Lindell, 2011 ; Reilly, Bellugi, & Wulfeck, 2004). Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay The simplicity that tasks are dominated by one side of the brain is a notion not supported by science – even the study that was the basis of this popular tradition did not necessarily apply to normally functioning brains. There are two hemispheres that each play an essential role in performing tasks; one side of the brain is not more creative, nor more logical, nor more analytical: some of these functions may be localized in one hemisphere, but their overall function does not depend on a single hemisphere, because the hemispheres are not isolated from each other. . The classification of brain functions into simple, simplistic dichotomies (“left brain versus right brain”) is why this myth exists, a myth that largely ignores the intimate working relationship of a system that is the human brain.ReferencesBandura , A. (1994). Self-efficacy. In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human behavior (Vol. 4, pp. 71-81). New York: Academic Press. (Reprinted in H. Friedman [Ed.], Encyclopedia of mental health. San Diego: Academic Press, 1998). Bruer, J. T. (2002). Avoiding the pediatrician's mistake: How neuroscientists can help educators (and themselves). Nature Neuroscience (Supplement), 5, 1031-1033. Dündar, S. and Gündüz, N. (2016), Misconceptions about the brain: neuromyths of pre-service teachers. Mind, Brain and Education, 10: 212-232. doi:10.1111/mbe.12119Gazzaniga, M.S. (2015). Tales from Both Sides of the Brain: A Life in Neuroscience (1st ed.). New York, NY: Ecco. Gibson, C., Folley, B.S., & Park, S. (2009). Enhanced divergent thinking and creativity in musicians: a behavioral and near-infrared spectroscopy study. Brain and Cognition, 69, 162-169. Lienhard, D.A. (December 27, 2017). Roger Sperry's split-brain experiments (1959-1968). Embryo Project Encyclopedia. Excerpt from