Ambidexters are 'less bright'

People who can use both their hands with equal skill may appear to be clever but the truth is they're not even as bright as the left- or right-handed, new research says.

"There is a dip in intellectual performance among the ambidextrous relative to left- and right-handers," say the researchers, who found no difference in the performances of left and right handers.

In the new study, psychologists from the University of Auckland analysed the replies to IQ tests of around 1,300 men and women which also included information on handedness.

Results show that the IQs ranged from 85 to 135, with an average of 99.6. The average for the ambidextrous group, however, was lower.

The researchers found that ambidexters performed less well in arithmetic, spatial skills, language, memory, and reasoning.

"Ambidexters scored lower than left- or right-handers on all tests except for social knowledge," say the researchers in the journal Neuropsychologia.