[Hemispheric asymmetry of the P300 wave to unrecognized emotional words]

The wave P300 was recorded in both hemispheres in order to study interhemispheric differences in the process of perception of unrecognized verbal stimuli. The stimuli--unrecognized words, neutral and emotional--were alternately presented at random in the left and right visual fields. In response to an unrecognized emotional word, the amplitude of the P300 wave increases diffusely in both hemispheres, as compared to the response to a neutral word, with no changes in interhemispheric differences. They change considerably in the process of an "unaccountable" emotion, caused by an unrecognized word, due to unilateral activation of the right hemisphere. The conclusion is made on the predominant role of the right hemisphere in the cortical organization of such unconscious function as "unaccountable" emotion.