Hemispheric Asymmetry in the Processing of Stroop Stimuli: The Effect of Enhancement of Spatial Skills

There is a body of evidence which supports the concept of biological determinants of hemispheric asymmetry. In addition, there appear to be environmental influences. the present investigation was designed to determine whether there are differences, on the Stroop phenomenon, between individuals with more developed spatial skills and controls, as well as between males and females. Thirty-six art students and 27 psychology students who had no training in drawing participated in this study. There were 25 males and 38 females, all of whom were right-handed. An analysis of covariance revealed that the covariable, the word, was significantly related to the color score for all groups. There was a significant difference between art students and controls and between males and females. Male art students had a significantly larger corrected color response mean than all other groups. There appears to be not only a significant statistical interaction but perhaps an interaction of biology with environment as well.