Left vs Right-Handed Sign Language Comprehension Speed
Author: University of Birmingham
Published: 2017/05/09 - Updated: 2026/01/17
Publication Type: Research, Study, Analysis
Category Topic: Deaf Communication - Related Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Cognition by University of Birmingham scholars, presents findings from a controlled experiment with 43 deaf British Sign Language users that challenges assumptions about sign language processing. The study provides valuable evidence supporting motor theory applications in visual-manual languages, showing that signers process signs more quickly when the handedness matches their own - particularly for complex two-handed signs. For deaf individuals, sign language educators, and interpreters, these findings offer practical insights into communication efficiency and suggest that exposure to diverse signing styles may matter more than previously understood. The research methodology was rigorous, using picture-sign matching tasks with common words to isolate the specific effects of hand dominance on comprehension speed - Disabled World (DW).
Introduction
The speed at which sign language users understand what others are 'saying' to them depends on whether the conversation partners are left- or right-handed, a new study has found. Researchers at the University of Birmingham worked with British Sign Language (BSL) signers to see how differences in sign production affect sign comprehension. In BSL a signer's dominant hand produces all one-handed signs and 'leads' when producing two-handed signs.
Main Content
They discovered that in general right and left-handed signers respond faster when they were watching a right-handed signer.
However, left-handed signers responded more quickly to complex two-handed signs made by signers who 'led' with their left hand. Similarly, right-handed signers reacted more swiftly to two-handed signs from fellow right-handers.
PhD student Freya Watkins and Dr. Robin Thompson published their research in the journal Cognition (April 2017).
Dr Robin Thompson commented:
"Had all signers performed better to right-handed input, it would suggest that how signers produce their own signs is not important for understanding. This is because right-handed signers are most common and signers are most used to seeing right-handed signs."
"However, as left-handed signers are better at understanding fellow left-handers for two-handed signs, the findings suggest that how people produce their own signs plays a part in how quickly they can understand others' signing."
Forty-three Deaf fluent BSL signers took part in the experiment, which had both right and left-handed participants make judgements about signs produced by left or right-handed sign models.
Participants were shown a picture followed by the sign for common words such as 'chocolate', 'guitar' and 'desk', and then were asked to decide if the picture and sign matched. The question was whether or not handedness during sign production would influence sign comprehension.
The results are in line with a weak version of the motor theory of speech perception - that people perceive spoken words in part by checking in with their own production system, but only when comprehension becomes difficult, for example in a noisy environment.
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: What makes this study particularly significant is how it bridges the gap between spoken and signed language theories, demonstrating that the motor systems we use to produce language - whether vocal or manual - actively shape how we perceive communication from others. The finding that handedness affects comprehension speed only for complex signs, while simple one-handed signs show a general right-hand preference, suggests our brains take shortcuts when processing familiar patterns but rely more heavily on our own physical experience when faced with challenging linguistic input. This has real implications for sign language instruction and interpreter training, potentially arguing for intentional exposure to both left and right-handed signing models to build fuller comprehension abilities across the deaf community - Disabled World (DW).Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by University of Birmingham and published on 2017/05/09, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.