Reliability of laterality effects in a dichotic listening task with nonverbal material

The present study examined the reliability of a dichotic listening task using nonverbal stimuli. Twenty undergraduate students (all right-handed native English speakers) had to report whether they had heard a target emotion. The task used English words (bower, dower, power, tower) pronounced with an angry, happy, neutral, or sad emotional tone. Results showed a relatively high level of test-retest reliability for the laterality effect. In addition, a significant gender by ear of presentation interaction was obtained. The interaction reflected the fact that a strong left ear advantage was found in females but not in males. The findings indicate that the task used here should be considered a reliable means to assess the lateralization of emotions. Issues concerning the relation between gender and laterality are addressed in the discussion.