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The human brain, a complex organ, is functionally divided into two cerebral hemispheres—left and right. These hemispheres are interconnected by a structure of paramount importance, the corpus callosum. This substantial bundle of neural fibers is not just a bridge between the hemispheres but a crucial element for the brain's comprehensive functioning. It enables efficient communication between the two hemispheres, allowing each side of the brain to control and receive sensory and motor...
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Updated: May 22, 2025

Central and Divided Visual Field Presentation of Emotional Images to Measure Hemispheric Differences in Motivated Attention
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Seeing and visualizing across the hemispheres.

Selene Schintu1, Paolo Bartolomeo2

  • 1CIMeC-Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Trento, Italy; Department of Psychology, George Washington University, Washington, DC, United States.

Handbook of Clinical Neurology
|March 12, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The human brain shows hemispheric asymmetry in visual processing. The right hemisphere (RH) handles global details, while the left hemisphere (LH) processes local information and conceptual levels.

Keywords:
Hemispheric asymmetryHemispheric lateralizationVisual mental imageryVisual object perceptionVisual object recognition

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Neurobiology of Vision
  • Human Brain Hemispheric Specialization

Background:

  • Despite a perceived symmetric visual world, the human brain displays functional asymmetries between the right hemisphere (RH) and left hemisphere (LH).
  • These asymmetries are evident in various visual cognition processes, impacting how we perceive and process visual information.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review behavioral and neuroimaging evidence on hemispheric functional asymmetries in visual object processing and mental imagery.
  • To explore the roles of RH and LH in different stages of visual cognition, from perception to conceptualization.

Main Methods:

  • Review of behavioral studies in neurotypical individuals.
  • Analysis of neuroimaging data from neurotypical individuals and neurological patients.
  • Examination of evidence related to functional specialization in RH and LH visual networks.

Main Results:

  • RH preference for global visual processing; LH preference for local visual processing.
  • RH excels in perceptual integration, shifting to LH for higher conceptual and semantic processing.
  • LH ventral temporal cortex is crucial for visual mental imagery, translating meaning into visualization.

Conclusions:

  • Hemispheric asymmetries in visual object processing are influenced by factors like neural wiring efficiency and specialized networks (e.g., RH attention, LH language).
  • Visual object processing involves complex interactions between large-scale cortical circuits within and across hemispheres.
  • Understanding these asymmetries provides insight into the neural basis of visual cognition and mental imagery.