The Type of Handedness and Correlation Analysis of Handedness Assessment Items on University Students in Korea / 체질인류학회지

The left handers are different from the right handers in brain development aspects and various perceptive or cognitive performance. There are known the types of handedness are under social and cultural influence. Moreover, the different races or countries show the different sensitivity to each item in assessment tool. The aim of the this study is to assess type of handedness and choose the best item of assessment tool for Korean. The subjects of this study were 1,063 persons. Data were collected by total 31 items including 20 items through reconstruction of the Oldfield Test, Annett Questionnaire and Croviz-Zener Questionnaire. The reliability of tool is Cronbach's alpha=0.948. The data were analyzed through frequency, reliability analysis, t-test, and Pearson's Correlation analysis by SPSS win 14.0. The 11.5% of total subjects was changed handedness through experience, 62.7% of these subjects changed from left handedness to right or mixed handedness, and 30.5% of these subjects changed handedness from sixth years old or more to below eighth years old. The mean of handedness score between parents and offspring revealed statistically significant difference (father and offspring t=-5.227, p<0.001, mother and offspring t=-4.515, p<0.001). The left handedness increased from the past ratio 4.8% (Kang 1994) to the present study 6.0% (64 persons) by handedness assessment tool. The mean of total items showed significant positive correlations with hammering a nail (r=0.892, p<0.001), gripping knife (r=0.871), using scissors (r=0.847), and writing exhibited the lowest correlation (r=0.563). These results demonstrate that left handers in Korea were increased than the results by previous researchers, and the best items for distinguishing the left handers from the right handers were the hand hammering a nail, gripping knife, using scissors, lighting a match, and throwing small ball.

Lower Extremity Rotational Profile in Students of Elementary School / 대한정형외과학회잡지

We studied 600 normal lower extremities of Korean students of elementary school in order to establish normal values for the rotational profile and to define any differences between ethnic groups. Rotational profile examined at this study included medial and lateral rotation of the hip and thighfoot angle. The mean value of medial rotation of the hip was 48 degrees with a range of 35 to 64 degrees in male subjects, and 50 degrees with a range of 35 to 60 degrees in female subjects. The mean value of lateral rotation of the hip was 57 degrees with a range of 43 to 75 degrees, and 53 degrees with a range of 40 to 72 degrees in female subjects. Unlike medial rotation, lateral rotation of the hip was greater in male than in female subjects by a mean difference of 4 degrees(T-test, p<0.05). The mean value of thigh-foot angle was 10 degrees with a range of -2 to 23 degrees in male subjects, and 12 degrees with a range of 0 to 21 degrees in female subjects. The total range of hip rotation was slightly greater in Korean than in Caucasians or in Chinese, but, to conclude this, more large study by the same methods will be needed in other areas of Korea.