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The comforting substrate and the right brain

P C Horton1

  • 1Child Guidance Clinic for Central Connecticut, USA.

Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic
|January 1, 1995
PubMed
Summary

This study investigated the brain

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Psychology

Background:

  • The precise neural basis for the 'comforting substrate' remains largely unexplored.
  • Previous research has not definitively localized the brain regions involved in seeking or providing comfort.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To test the hypothesis that the comforting substrate is localized in the right parietal area of the brain.
  • To investigate potential sex differences in the lateralization of comfort-seeking behavior.

Main Methods:

  • A forced-choice experimental design was employed with sixty healthy adult subjects (39 female, 21 male).
  • Participants completed two comparison tasks involving choices between identical objects (red balls vs. stuffed bears described as needing comfort).
  • Behavioral choices were analyzed using binomial tests to assess statistical significance.

Main Results:

  • In a control task, subjects predominantly chose the right red ball (20% chose left, p < .01), indicating no inherent leftward bias.
  • When choosing between identical stuffed bears needing comfort, a significant leftward preference emerged (54.5% chose left, p < .05).
  • In discordant trials (left bear/right ball or vice versa), 20 out of 23 subjects chose the left bear (p < .0002), strongly supporting a left-sided preference for comfort-related stimuli.

Conclusions:

  • The findings suggest a potential right-brain lateralization for the comforting substrate, particularly evident in comfort-seeking behaviors.
  • Evidence indicates that this right-brain dominance may be more pronounced in females, especially mothers, hinting at sex-specific neural processing of comfort.

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