Using the non-dominant hand for common tasks can improve self-control and reduce aggressive reactions, according to a 2012 study. Participants who trained to use their “wrong” hand for two weeks showed better examples of self-control, such as being polite. This forced them to expand their self-control skills and override habitual tendencies.
Psychologists, criminologists and sociologists have long observed a connection between aggression and a lack of self-control. Simply put, when an individual’s ability to maintain self-control begins to wane, aggressive reactions can easily be triggered. In a 2012 study published in the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science, researchers found that a person can exercise self-control by using their nondominant hand for common tasks, such as clicking a computer mouse, stirring coffee, or opening a brings. Over time, this can strengthen an individual’s ability to resist aggressive responses.
The key is self-control:
In the study, right-handers were instructed to do more with their left hand, and vice versa, for two weeks. Training participants to use the “wrong” hand led to better examples of self-control, such as being polite.
The researchers explained that requiring people to consciously override habitual tendencies to use their dominant hands forced them to expand their self-control skills.
Researcher Thomas Denson of the University of New South Wales said the research shows that ‘it’s not that aggressive people don’t want to control themselves, they just aren’t very good at it’.
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