Changing handedness: What can we learn from preference shift studies?

• The human capacity to change handedness direction and degree is limited. • Behavioral and neural analysis suggested a ceiling effect for handedness plasticity. • Neural asymmetries correlate with changes in behavioral measures. • Lateralized practice plays a significant role in handedness shifts. • Rightward shifts happen only in a targeted behavior, usually writing. Handedness is a dynamic and complex aspect of human behavior. Changing it through practice, either willingly or obliged by some reason, requires a considerable amount of effort. Analyzing studies that presented handedness shifts may expand our comprehension of this phenomenon, since knowing how to change it might provide insights into how it develops. Therefore, we reviewed the outcomes of handedness shifts. The results suggest that neural asymmetries related to handedness are likely a consequence of lateralized practice since they correlate with modifications in the behavioral patterns. Clearly, practice is not the only factor influencing handedness development, but it seems to play a significant role in the formation and consolidation of neural and behavioral asymmetries. Another key finding of our review is the suggestion of a ceiling effect for the capacity to change handedness direction and degree, considering none of the reviewed studies reported complete shifts in behavioral measures and brain activation patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]