Most adults show opposite-side biases in the imagined holding of infants and objects

Abstract

Three hundred university undergraduates were asked to imagine holding in their arms first an object (either an "expensive vase" or an "old shoebox") and then a young infant. For all three tasks, side biases were found that were significantly different from chance and from one another: 81% of the subjects reported holding the imagined vase in their right arm, 64% reported holding the imagined shoebox in their right arm, and 66% reported holding the imagined infant in their left arm. These results further support the hypothesis that the left-side bias is unique to infants and, for the first time, establish this through direct comparisons of holding-side biases for infants and objects within subjects. The sex and handedness of the holder as well as the qualities of the imagined object also were found to contribute to the side and strength of the bias.