Laterality in Sports

Florian Loffing is a post-doctoral fellow at the Institute of Sports and Sports Sciences of the University of Kassel (Germany). He obtained his PhD from the University of Muenster (Germany), Department of Sport Psychology, for his dissertation on performance in left- and right-handed professional tennis players. Florian’s research interests focus upon the perceptual-cognitive processes and mechanisms that underlie skilled performance in sports. This specifically includes the examination of laterality effects on visual anticipation, decision-making and high achievement in the elite domain of sports. Florian’s work has been published in several peer-reviewed journals including PLoS ONE, Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, Human Movement Science, Acta Psychologica, and Journal of Sports Sciences. Norbert Hagemann is currently Full Professor for Sport Psychology at the University of Kassel (Germany). He received his PhD from the University of Muenster for his thesis “Heuristic problem solving strategies of team coaches”. Prof. Hagemann is studying the cognitive processes underlying how athletes perform in training and competitive situations. The focus is particularly on their perception and attention processes. Prof. Hagemann has been working on the topic of laterality for several years. This research has been supported by several research grants from the German Research Foundation. He publishes and reviews regularly papers in high-impact international peer-reviewed Journals. Bernd Strauss, born 1959, is currently Full Professor for Sport Psychology at the University of Muenster, Germany (since 1998). He obtained his PhD from the University of Kiel (Germany) in 1992 with a thesis about complex problem solving. He had been the former president of the German Society of Sport Sciences (2003-2009). Currently he is president of the German Sport Psychology association. Bernd Strauss published more than 20 books, and more than 70 peer-reviewed papers. Currently he is Editor-in-chief (in collaboration with Nikos Ntoumanis, AUS) of the Journal “Psychology of Sport and Exercise” published by Elsevier. His main research interests are focused on expertise in sports (perception, attention, laterality), social psychology (self concept, influence of audiences on performances, sports spectators) and research methodology. Clare MacMahon is a senior lecturer and Head of Sports Science at Swinburne Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Australia. She has an undergraduate degree in Psychology from McGill University, and post graduate degrees in Human Kinetics and Human Biodynamics from the University of Ottawa, and McMaster University. In her work on sport expertise, with an interest in decision making and the cognitive components of performance, Clare has conducted research in labs in Canada, the US, Belgium, Germany and Australia, working alongside world leaders in the area. Her work has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Australian Research Council.

1. Laterality in Sports: More Than Two Sides of the Same Coin

Section A. Laterality – An Important and Often Disregarded Topic 2. Origins, Development, and Persistence of Laterality in Humans 3. In Fencing, Are Left-Handers Trouble for Right-Handers? What Fencing Masters Said in the Past and What Scientists Say Today 4. Measurement of Laterality and Its Relevance for Sports 5. Laterality and Its Role in Talent Identification and Athlete Development 6. Perspectives From Sports Medicine

Section B. Motor Control and Learning 7. What Can We Learn About Cognition From Studying Handedness? Insights From Cognitive Neuroscience 8. Laterality of Basic Motor Control Mechanisms: Different Roles of the Right and Left Brain Hemispheres 9. Effector Transfer 10. Near Misses and the Effect of Attentional Asymmetries on Sporting Performance

Section C. Performance in Sports 11. Laterality in Individualized Sports 12. Performance Differences Between Left- and Right-Sided Athletes in One-on-One Interactive Sports 13. Biomechanical Considerations of Laterality in Sport 14. Laterality Effects on Performance in Team Sports: Insights From Soccer and Basketball 15. Skill Acquisition in Left- and Right-Dominant Athletes: Insights From Elite Coaching