Right-Left Discrimination in Younger and Older Children Measured with Two Tests Containing Stimuli on Different Abstraction Levels

Abstract

Two paper-and-pen tests, consisting of line drawings of human figures, viewed from the back, the front, or randomly alternating between back and front drawings, were used to study right-left discrimination in younger and older children. One test, called the Abstract test, had just a circle to indicate heads of the figures. The other test, called the Concrete test, showed facial characteristics and hair in the head circle. The sample consisted of 280 younger and older children, ages 7–8 and 12–13 years, respectively. The main findings were that participants who responded to the Concrete test solved more items correctly compared to those using the old figures in the Abstract test. The error scores did not differ between the tests. The older children solved more items correctly than the younger children. The older children also showed a significant decrease in correct scores on the subtest with the alternating views subtest compared with the other subtests. Their error scores did not differ across the subtests. The younger children solved a similar number of correct items on all subtests; however, they made significantly more errors on the subtest using the front view than on the other two subtests. The results are discussed in relation to theories of hemispheric lateralization, brain development, and cognitive development.