Developmental Changes of Hemisphere Collaboration for Tactile Sequential Information

Abstract

Developmental change in interhemispheric and intrahemispheric transfer of tactile information was investigated with subjects aged 4, 6, 10 and 20 years. In experiment 1, interhemispheric transfer was examined by 74 subjects in both crossed hand and uncrossed hand conditions. Sequential strikes on three fingertips was given to one hand, and subjects indicated the sequence with the thumb of the same hand, and subjects indicated the sequence with the thumb of the same hand (uncrossed condition) and the opposite hand (crossed condition). The results showed that though 4 and 6-year-old children showed a significant cross-localisation deficit, this disappeared by age of 10. This provided evidence for a developmental improvement in interhemispheric transfer which is consistent with how myelination of the corpus callosum takes place during the first ten years of life. In experiment 2, intrahemispheric and interand intrahemispheric transfer were examined with 77 subjects. Sequential strikes on three fingertips was given to one hand, and subjects indicated the sequence with the thumb of the hand or verbal response. The results were generally similar to those of experiment 1, except that when the task required both interand intrahemispheric communication, 10-year-old children did not reach the level of 20-year-old adults. The results suggest that full synergy of interand intrahemispheric collaboration continues to develop over the second decade of life.

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