TY - JOUR
T1 - The relationship between line bisection performance and emotion processing
T2 - where do you draw the line?
AU - Hatin, Bianca
AU - Sykes Tottenham, Laurie
PY - 2016/1/29
Y1 - 2016/1/29
N2 - A recent study demonstrated that higher accuracy on a line bisection task related to greater ratings of evocative impact from paintings. The authors suggested that line bisection accuracy may act as a “barometer” for both visuospatial and emotion processing, likely as a function of overlapping neural correlates in the right temporoparietal region. We suggest and test an alternative explanation: that visuospatial bias interacted with asymmetries in the paintings and the rating scales to produce the apparent relationship between emotion and visuospatial functions. In the present study, using both visual-analogue and numeric rating scales, the relationship between line bisection performance and ratings of paintings (evocative impact, aesthetics, novelty, technique, and closure) was examined in a young adult sample. We demonstrate that left-hand line bisection bias direction, not line bisection accuracy, is related to most ratings, and that line bisection bias interacts with stimulus orientation (non-mirrored/mirrored) and rating scale direction (ascending/descending) in such a way that can explain the results of the previous study. We conclude that the line bisection task appears to be a sensitive measure of visuospatial attentional biases, which can influence ratings of asymmetrical paintings, and may affect how individuals perceive stimuli in their environment.
AB - A recent study demonstrated that higher accuracy on a line bisection task related to greater ratings of evocative impact from paintings. The authors suggested that line bisection accuracy may act as a “barometer” for both visuospatial and emotion processing, likely as a function of overlapping neural correlates in the right temporoparietal region. We suggest and test an alternative explanation: that visuospatial bias interacted with asymmetries in the paintings and the rating scales to produce the apparent relationship between emotion and visuospatial functions. In the present study, using both visual-analogue and numeric rating scales, the relationship between line bisection performance and ratings of paintings (evocative impact, aesthetics, novelty, technique, and closure) was examined in a young adult sample. We demonstrate that left-hand line bisection bias direction, not line bisection accuracy, is related to most ratings, and that line bisection bias interacts with stimulus orientation (non-mirrored/mirrored) and rating scale direction (ascending/descending) in such a way that can explain the results of the previous study. We conclude that the line bisection task appears to be a sensitive measure of visuospatial attentional biases, which can influence ratings of asymmetrical paintings, and may affect how individuals perceive stimuli in their environment.
KW - Line bisection
KW - visuospatial attention
KW - emotion processing
KW - temporoparietal
KW - art
U2 - 10.1080/1357650X.2015.1134564
DO - 10.1080/1357650X.2015.1134564
M3 - Article
SN - 1357-650X
VL - 21
SP - 709
EP - 731
JO - Laterality: Asymmetries of Body, Brain and Cognition
JF - Laterality: Asymmetries of Body, Brain and Cognition
IS - 4-6
ER -