Page 55 - The Modul of Psycholinguistics Studies_2

sensory functions) and males have a thicker right hemisphere
(one specialization of which involves visual-spacial functions).
Language, logical and analytical operations, and higher
mathematics, for example, generally occur in the left
hemisphere of the brain, while the right hemisphere is superior
at recognizing emotions, recognizing faces and taking in the

structures of things globally without analysis. This separation of
structure and function in the hemispheres is technically referred
to as lateralization : incoming experiences are received by the
left or right hemisphere depending on the nature of those
experiences, be they speech, faces or sensations of touch.
Associated with lateralization is what might be termed
„earedness‟, where right-handed persons with lateralization for
language in the left hemisphere will perceive more readily
speech sounds through the right ear than the left.
The main language centers in the left hemispheres are Broca’s
area, in the front part of the brain, Wernike’s area, towards the

back, and the angular gyrus, which is even further back. Broca‟s
area and Wernike‟s area are connected by tissue (the arcuate

fasciculus). These areas are not found in the right hemisphere.
Generally, only the left hemisphere is used for speaking and
writing.

3. Language Areas and Functioning

Psycholinguistics | 55