Ocular Dominance and Perceptual Asymmetry

Abstract

Two experiments were performed to determine the relation of sighting and acuity dominance to tachistoscopic recognition. In both, single-letter material was exposed binocularly to either the left or right of fixation at brief durations. In Exp. I ( N = 32) visual field differences in recognition were unrelated to sighting dominance. The results of Exp. II ( N = 24) suggested that both acuity dominance and cerebral dominance affect visual field differences. While all were strongly right-handed (and presumably left cerebral-dominant), right acuity-dominant Ss displayed a large right-field superiority, whereas left acuity-dominant Ss exhibited no visual field difference. These results suggest an interaction between acuity dominance and cerebral dominance which may be mediated by the relative superiority of the crossed optic pathways.