Language and task effects on lateralized word recognition

Behavioral laterality effects in naming and lexical decision in Farsi and English were used to evaluate three theories of cross-linguistic differences. First, the Scanning hypothesis predicts a smaller right visual hemifield advantage (RVFA) in Farsi in both tasks. Second, the Cerebral Dominance hypothesis predicts a consistent RVFA in both languages. Third, the Right Hemisphere hypothesis predicts a selective decrease in RVFA in Farsi for those components of the task that involve lexical semantic access. Results supported the Right Hemisphere hypothesis, showing greater right hemisphere contribution to orthographic addressing in Farsi than in English.