An Improved Measure of Handedness: The Fazio Laterality Inventory

The Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) is the most widely used handedness inventory. The EHI has some weaknesses: it has been suggested it is outdated; the instructions are frequently misunderstood by participants; and the response format produces skewed responses in those who avoid extreme responding. This study introduces the Fazio Laterality Inventory (FLI) as an alternative that addresses these limitations. In an initial development study, the 12-item instrument showed acceptable internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha =.921), and a one-component solution explained 55.5% of the variance. After removal of two items, a validation study revealed the instrument again had good internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha =.943) with a one-component solution explaining 65.8% of the variance. The FLI did not correlate as strongly as expected with the EHI, likely due to its lack of an "Oldfield Admonition" as well as the finer scaling of the response format. Additional analyses of the FLI as a whole and each item are offered. A scoring procedure and cutoffs for utilizing the FLI in clinical and research settings are suggested.