Hand and foot preference in two cultures

Adult participants from India and France were requested to respond to hand and foot preference questionnaires. The items of the questionnaires assessed the choice of the preferred hand and foot on a scale that ranged from extreme left preference through no preference to extreme right preference. Results showed that both groups were more right lateralized for hand actions, whereas foot preferences were less right lateralized and spread across extreme right preference to no preference on the laterality index continuum for men and women. As compared to requiring large numbers for consistency in hand preferences across geographical regions, trends in the lateralization of hand and foot preferences may be consistently obtained with smaller samples. The study reveals the existing difference in lateral preferences between the upper and lower limbs that is sustained regardless of culture or geographical location and indicates the need for further investigation to know why the lower limbs are less lateralized than the upper limbs.