The success of Messi, Rafa Nadal, and Muhammad Ali is undeniable, but research shows that left-handed people are better prepared for higher levels of competition than right-handed people. The study was published in the journal Scientific Reports and was carried out by a group of researchers from the Department of Psychology at the University of Chieti Pescara in Italy.
Why left-handed people are more successful than right-handed people
The study revealed that the majority of people are right-handed, but about 10.6% are left-handed. This trait is sometimes associated with benefits in a variety of high-performance sports, such as those practiced by Messi (soccer), Nadal (tennis), and Muhammad Ali (boxing).
These experts conducted two experiments. In the first stage, we collected data from more than 1,100 people who completed several online surveys designed to measure manual preferences, psychological motivations, and other personality traits. All of this was used to calculate the Lateralization Quotient (LQ), which is a measure of a person’s handedness.
After they answered, the team selected more than 480 people with a pronounced manual preference and another 50 with a pronounced left-handed preference for other questionnaires administered to calculate competitiveness, anxiety, and depression to see if manual preference had anything to do with any of these personality traits.
Of these, 24 left-handed and right-handed individuals completed the 9-hole peg test, placing one hand on the board as quickly as possible.
The study also showed that left-handed people were more competitive, had higher competitive performance, and were less likely to avoid competition due to anxiety than right-handed people, concluding that the drive to compete lies in the mind rather than in specific physical skills.
In conclusion, the researchers’ theory is that right-handed people may have an advantage in large groups, but left-handed people have an advantage when competing in one-on-one situations.
