If you haven’t completed the left-handed test yet, you can use this link to go to the survey form (it contains 12 Left/Right questions and will only take you a minute to complete).
This page gives our analysis of the surveys completed so far. By 27 May 2015 34,271 people had completed the survey and they declared their handedness as:
| Do you consider yourself to be left or right handed? | ||
| Left | 25,317 | 74% |
| Right | 3,127 | 9% |
| Both | 5,398 | 16% |
| Not answered | 433 | 1% |
| Total | 34,271 | 100% |
Of the people that consider themselves to be left-handed this is the percentage that answered each question “Left”:
| Question | % Left |
| Writing hand (we assume that the other 3% of people who consider themselves left-handed but said they write right-handed were forced to change their writing hand when they were young and have not changed it back) |
97% |
| Cutting with scissors (a lot of people mentioned that they use scissors right-handed because that was all that used to be available and they have never changed) |
70% |
| Holding a bat (one handed) | 78% |
| Eating with a spoon | 94% |
| Holding a toothbrush | 92% |
| Brushing hair | 89% |
| Eye (using a telescope) | 74% |
| Ear (using a telephone) (some people mentioned that they hold the phone to their right ear to leave their left hand free for taking notes. LHC’s Keith just gets in a tangle, holding the phone to his left ear with his right hand so he can still write with his left!) |
79% |
| Foot (kicking a ball) | 64% |
| Folding arms, which is on top | 68% |
| Clapping, which hand is on top | 81% |
| Clasping hands behind back, which hand is doing the holding | 77% |
| Throwing a ball | 77% |
| Turning the pages of a book | 74% |
| Using a bat or club two-handed (hand on bottom) (this question cause a lot of confusion with people thinking about “bottom” differently if they were holding the bat or club down, e.g. cricket or golf, or up for e.g. baseball. What we meant was the hand on the bottom being the one nearest the hitting end of the bat. If this is your left, you will be facing to your right looking over your right shoulder to see the ball coming) |
65% |
The percentage of people who consider themselves left-handed who were graded at each of our levels were:
| Grading | % of total |
| Seriously Left-Handed (>90% score) | 46% |
| Mainly left-handed (60-90% score) | 44% |
| Left but mixed-handed (40-60% score) | 7% |
| Probably a Right-Hander! (0-40%) | 3% |
The overall average score for people who consider themselves left-handed was 83%
And the number of people who scored 100% was 3,710 (15% of all the left-handers)
Of the 5,398 people who consider themselves “Both handed”, 60% use their left hand to write, 30% to cut with scissors and 67% used a phone on their left ear. Their overall weighted score was 55%.
Please add your own comments or interpretations as comments at the bottom of this page.
If you haven’t completed the left-handed test yourself yet, you can use this link to go to the survey form
A very well chalked out survey for evaluating the degree of left handedness. I had a confusion in that bat question, because I imagined a cricket bat in action. In that case, my left hand would be nearer to the hitting part of the bat. But being a badminton player, I am purely left handed, i.e., I use my left hand for the racquet and the right hand to hold the shuttle for service.
I am really glad to know that I am 100% ‘seriously’ left handed.
Wishing all of you a very lefty Left Handers’ Day 2014!
I register as 90% left handed
When I do anything with one hand its with my left but when I do anything with two it is usually right handed. Cricket bats and golf clubs for example.Tennis is left handed. I found out through attempting to do so that I could not use a left handed tin opener. I use the strength in my left to close the handle while manipulating the turn screw with my right.
I am very left handed, yet the best scizzors as a
child were right handed- like can openers, so that is what I use. i must have been taught to kick right footed, because every other foot dominant thing ( like stomp, etc) i do lefty. fun quiz though, especially the folding arms, etc.
95% left handed! Bring it on! Just like others have mentioned, I hold my phone with my right hand so I write with my left. Reckon should get 100%!
Also study tae kwon-do and krav maga and students don’t expect attacks from a left handed person (predominantly right handed attacks etc). Certainly wakes them up!
Everyone is getting mixed up on the “hands on the bat” issue because they think about the bat being held aloft instead of with the end of the bat on the ground (as described).
If you hold the bat aloft with your left hand on top, that’s the same as the right hand being on top if you’re holding the bat with its end on the ground (as described).
Although your test shows me as 100% left-handed, there are two things I do ‘right-handed which you may consider adding to your test. One is using the computer mouse (don’t know if it’s because it’s set up for right-handers) and the other is ironing.
Last year I suddenly lost strength and coordination in my left hand and arm apparently due to nerve injury. I was glad then that I am able to do some things right handed. It would have been even more difficult if I had to relearn everything.
I’ve tried holding the phone to my right ear with my right hand so I can write, but it feels eve more awkward than holding the phone to my left ear with my right hand, freeing my left to write. In a pinch I can write with my right hand but it’s even sloppier than my left handed writing and much slower.
I’m a lefty, but I’m mixed-handed. Never knew LH scissors existed until I was too old! I use the mouse with my right/wrong bc I type better left handed 🙂
When I was very small and struggling to use right=handed scissors left handed my mother said “Try using your other hand.” I’ve used scissors right handed ever since. It’s the only way right handed scissors will work. I once bought a pair of scissors that were labeled left handed. The handles were molded for a left hander but the blades were not reversed. It took me a few tries to figure out what the problem was; so I took them back to the store. That was about 40 years ago. I’ve been using scissors right handed for more than 60 years. I think it would be a brain wrench to try switching now.
When eating I cut food with the knife in my right hand and fork in my left. My mother taught me by holding my hands in hers. But I don’t switch hands, just continue to eat with my left hand. But when I’m slicing bread, cheese, meat, etc. I hold the knife in my left hand. Somehow it’s just easier to cut straight that way even though I’ve never even held a lef handed bread knife. I just use what’s available.