A CROSS-CULTURAL DEVELOPMENTAL-STUDY OF DIRECTIONAL ASYMMETRIES IN CIRCLE DRAWING

Results have indicated a decreasing tendency to draw circles in a cloc kwise direction and an increasing tendency to draw them in a countercl ockwise fashion with increases in grade. Blau labeled the developmenta lly less advanced, clockwise circle drawing as ''torque'' and further proposed that torque was related to psychological difficulties. The pr esent study compared the direction of circle drawing for American stud ents, Japanese living in japan, and Japanese living in America Results showed that with advancing grade, Americans increasingly drew in a co unterclockwise direction, whereas the Japanese increasingly drew in a clockwise direction. Also, Japanese living in America showed a less pr onounced tendency to draw clockwise circles across grades than Japanes e living in Japan. The results suggest that circle drawing movements a n a function of culture and education in learning how to write.