Handwriting and Creativity

Abstract

Graphology, which exists both as art and as science, is the analysis of handwriting. Handwriting is a complex, overlearned motor skill in which biomechanical and cognitive processes contribute to the spatial form and the kinematic features of the handwritten product. In addition to communicating the meanings of written words, graphology was founded on the dubious premise that handwriting can express features of a person's personality, mentality, and capability. While graphology as it exists is at best a weak method for inferring personality traits and predicting future performance, techniques such as the Roman–Anthony Psychogram do make it possible to generate an overall view of the personality, and make possible inferences about cognitive and affective mental structure.

Full text

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. Handwriting and Greativity
W D TenHouten, University ot California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
@ 2011 Elsevier lnc. All rights reserved.
This article is a revision of the previous edition article by Warren D TenHouten, volume 1, pp. 799-807, @ 1999, Elsevier lnc
Glossary
Creative aspirations The interest in, and the desire for, the
realization of a creation. Graphologically, creative
aspirations are reflected in the height and elaboration ofthe
upper zone of letters such as t, I h, k, and l, and in many
capitalized letters. It is the expressiveness ofwriting, or the
totality of graphic movements, that is sufficient to
differentiate one writer from another.
Creative organization The deliberate and systematic
production of ideas and methods that result in creation.
Graphologically, the creatively organized person can be
expected to show good organization, simplification of form,
and originality ofgraphic expression. Cood organization is
reflected in the overall use of space and movement in time
(ease of forward movement). Simplification is the use of
economic shortcuts, finding economy of time and motion,
and seeking what is essential. Originality refers to
spontaneity and creativity in the handling of space, form,
and movement.
Creativity in writing The ability to produce new forms, to
restructure stereotyped situations, to innovate, to redefine,
and to improvise. Required is the aspiration to imagine and
conceptualize creations, together with the organizational
skills for turning such ideas into obiective creations.
Graphology The study or description of handwriting in
relation to changes from the ordinary which occur in some
phpical disorders, such as hyperactivity, learning
disabilities, and alexithymia; the art or science of inferring a
person's personaliry, character struc(ure, and possibly,
aptitudes, ftom the peculiarities of his or her handwriting.
Intentionality Creativity iequires that a person is able to
care abot,t a srate of future aflairs (the realization of a
creation), to organize a program to realize this state, and to
persevere in this endeavor in spite ofdistractions, obstacles,
and obstructions. On the other hand, the intention to solve
a problem can lead to the deliberate and systematic
production ofideas that result in creations.
Spohen words are the sytnbols of mental agerience, and. written words are
the symbols of spohen words. Aristotle
Graphology, Personality, and Culture
Eleventh century Chinese scholar Kuo Io Hsu daimed that by
using handwriting. he could distinguish "the noble man from
the common man from a moral point of view." Efforts to
develop graphology as a rational science were underway in
eighteenth century Europe and North America, and for well
over a century there has been a consistent, yet limited, interest
in the relationship between handwriting and personality.
Notably in France and Israel, graphology is widely used in
personnel selection. This practice has been justly criticized as
unfair to potential employees, for its results fail to approach
the levels of validity attained by other widely available and less
expensive screening devices. Graphology is not a viable
method of assessing an individual's potential, and lacks ability
to predict on-the-job performance. More generally, the claims
ofpractitioners ofgraphology that their 'science' is sufficiently
developed to have practical reliability and validity has scant
support (Edwards and Armitage, 1992).
With respect to the evaluation of personality, graphology
has not shown itself to be effective in well-controlled tests.
Guides to graphology that describe relevant factors to examine
(e.9., slants, zone, pressure, size) and the traits (e.g., character,
personality, moral) they are daimed to 'reveal' lack consistency
and await standardization. Attempts by Fumham et al. (2003)
to predict psychometrically valid personality measures from
reliably measured handwriting factors collected under non-
self-conscious conditions have also failed to establish robust
relationships between graphology and personality. The claims
made for graphology are either not supported, or at best only
occasionally and weakly supported. Yet, the possibility of
future success cannot be ruled out. Graphology should not be
dismissed as mere quackery and pseudo-science, or dismissed
along with astrology, parapsychology, palmistry, the Tarot, and
other such occult knowledge practices, even though the roots
of graphology can be found in synpathetic magical practi€es.
The invention of writing, as a technique of representing
speech by a durable trace, was historically a dramatic leap for-
ward for humanity. Sequential numbering which requires a
slntem of number signs, is inconceivable without writing, and
such a number q/stem is prerequisite for a system of economic
exchange. This in turn is a requirement for the development of
urbanDed societies with developed economies, in which time
and value are subject to calculation. Thus, while graphology has
a long way to go to establish itself as a way to measure salient
aspects of one's personality and character stmcture, writing has
played a crucial role in the development of civilDation.
On the individual level, writing is essential to the develop-
ment of cognitive abilities. The leaming of handwriting has the
power to initiate reflection and to encourage the higher cognitive
processes of analysis and abstraction. WhereVer there are stu-
dents, legible writing is required, attractive script is appreciated,
588

l'
Handwriting and Greativity 589
and both can affect evaluations by teachers and institutional
gatekeepers. As text comes to be written directly onto com-
puter keyboards, and as the 'man of letters' comes to be
replaced by the 'blogger,' skilled handwriting has waned in
importance. Because each person's handwriting is unique,
however, graphology can and will long continue to be used
in legal systems to detect forgery and ascertain authorship of
written text. Handwriting is of interest to cognitive and affec-
tive neuroscience, because certain pathologies ofbrain devel-
opment and neurochemical processes of brainwork can result
in pathologies in speaking, reading, and writing. While
humans of all cultures, as far as we know, have the potential
for reading and writing, those cultures which remain largely
illiterate fall short of developing in their members the most
special of left hemisphere functions, rvhich include rational
analysis, and which presuppose the measurement of time and
money. Literacy, together with numerical cognition, confers
ability to question the epistemological and theological doc-
trines of one's culture and civilization, thereby attaining the
potential for developing a rational, enlightened, and scientific
understanding of the world. While neuroscientist loseph
Bogen (cited in de Kerckhove and Lumsden, 1988: aa2)
groused about our own culture being a scholasticized, post-
Cutenberg-induced-industrialized computer happy exaggera-
tion of the Graeco-Roman penchant for'propositionizing,' r'e
must take literacy, reading, and rvriting seriousl.v as one com-
ponent of what might be needed in order to avoid a possible
broader 'clash of civilizations' promoted by fundamenralists
of all kinds. With writing, and handu'riting, comes the prom-
ise of freedom to think logically and clearlv, hopefully in a rvay
that is not limited by the lack of affect and s),rnbolization,
which Bogen called 'appositionalizing.' By being taught to
decode alphabetic texts, which are both linear and sequential,
the brain is encouraged to adopt strategies of sequential anal-
ysis for a wide range of other cognitive operarions as we1l. This
insight was first expressed inPlato' s Phoedrus, in his suggestio n
that the art of writing bears a strong resemblance to the four
rules of investigation - examination, division (into kinds or
variables), order, and enumeration. this insight w,as anicu-
lated by Descartes, 2000 years later, in his Dlscourse on Method.
We find this perennial idea further explored, and grounded
in contemporary neurocognitive theory, in Martin Taylor's
(1983) model ofthe bilateral cooperative model ofreading.
Creativity: Aspirations and 0rganization
Creativity requires productive thinking. There is a 'dialectical'
aspect to creativity in that it often involves interaction
of logical-analytic/propositional and gestalt-synthetic/
appositional modes of thought), which are ordinarily latera-
lized to the leIl and right sides of the brains of right-handed
adults without substantial brain damage. Thinking that inte-
grates these two opposite yet complementary modes of
thought is perhaps necessary for creativit, but alone is insuffi-
cient because oflinkages between creativity and intentionality.
On the one hand, creative ideas can be stimulated by the
integration of analytic and syrrthetic thought. But creativity
means more than an idea and an aspiration; also required is
that something actually be created, a creation.
Graphology, the Study of Handwriting
Proponents of graphology (see Brannan, 2004) maintain that
writing can be used to identi$/ a seative personality insofar as
writing communicates not only the semantic content of words
but also expresses features of the personality structure of the
writer. Handwdting is a process of psychomotor gesturin& tlis
gesturing exemalizing and thereby giving creative expression
to ideas and the contents of inner speech. Qualitative-holistic
and quantitative methods of graphological analysis have been
developed with the intention of enabling graphologists to
make inferences about'sectors' or'constellations' of personal-
ity structue on the basis of detailed features of handwriting,
on the levels of words and letters. One well-known quantita-
tive graphological technique, the Psychbgram, was developed
by K Roman and given formalization and elaboration by
D. Anthony. The mostusual obiective of graphology in general,
and the Psychogram in particular, is to represent an integrated
view ofan individual's personality. The forry separate graphic
indicators of the Psychogram (organization, rhythm, speed,
rightward trend, pressure, etc.) are pafiitioned, on a concep-
wal, a prioi, basis, into eight sectors, induding 'intellect,
aspirations, and creativity'. Roman wisely cautions that no
single component or feature of handwriting can be interpreted
without reference to others, even though for purposes of anal-
ysis they can be set apart and considered separately, viewing
each one by itself. A single feature is significant only in relation
to the group to which it belongs. This advice is widely ignored
by graphologists. For example, Brannan (2004: 38) does not
hesitate to daim that "a relatively heavy r-bar is evidence of
strong will-power. . . . This trait implies the strength of purpose
of the writer" (an inference made about Babe Didrickson [lived
1914-19561, a noted female athlete). Anthony operationally
defines the intellect-aspirations-creativity sector of the Psycho-
gram by six quite general features of handwriting samples:
1. good organizational structure;
2. innovative simplification of form;
3. upperzone elaboration ('desire to form, build, or arrange,'
e.9.. of the letters b, d, f, h, h l, and t, and capitalized
letters);
4. upper zone height;
5. originaliry, and
6. expressiveness (indicated, most generally, by an overall
consistency in effort and direction).
Creativity, Thought, and the Brain
Gestalt-synthetic, holistic thought (in the adult, right-handed
person) is usually associated with the functioning of the right
cerebral hemisphere (RH) of the human brain, and logical-
analytic thought with the left hemisphere (LH). Intentionality,
along with planning monitoring, editing commanding, and
controlling, is associated with the executive-level functioning
ofthe ftontal lobes ofthe brain. The frontal lobes evolved our
of, and remain dosely linked to, the limbic structures which
provide emotional response to images and models, and which,
in combination with memory and information about the
body and environment, enable the frontal lobes to direct

590 Handwriting and Creativity
meaningful, goal-directed actions in the interests of the self.
The goal-directed behavioral programs of the frontal lobes
extend to intentions and plans. These programs are complex
resuits of social development and are formed with the partici-
pation of language, which enables abstraction, categorization,
and generalization, and which is much involved in the conuol
and regulation of behaviour.
Dysgraphia and the Split Brain
Dysgraphia - handwriting disability, can come abour, as rve
have seen, as a result of living in a Iargely preliterare cuhure.
It can also come about as a developmental disorder due
to genetic accident, injury or illness. Dysgraphia seldom
occurs in isolation, as it is often concomitant with related
disorders such as alexith)..rnia, dyslexia, dyscalculia, parkin-
sonism, hepatic encephalopathy, aphasia, artention-deficit
disorder, and various emotional pathologies. Still-developing
dysgraphic students are apt to also have physical disabilities,
sensory impairments, mental impairments, or emotional dis-
orders. Dysgraphia stands in the way of academic success.
Students with dysgraphia in the United States are eligible for
special educational services, and are apt to be placed in cate-
gorical classroom programs designed for children with specific
learning disabilities.
We can understand creativity through the study of neuro-
Iogical patients with a pathological lack of integration of ana-
l1tic and syrlthetic thought. Such a group of patients are the
'split-brain' (cerebral commissurotomy, corpus callosotomv)
patients who have had the two hemispheres of their brains
surgically divided through sectioning of the corpus callosum, a
structure containing some 200 million nerve fibers that directly
connect the two hemispheres. This radical surgery was carried
out as a ffeatment of last resort for severe, drug-refractory
epileptic seizures. Following this operation, patients are lim-
ited in their ability to integrate the workings of the two sides of
the brain. The two hemispheres can be of two minds. One of
these patients would put his arm around his wife with one
hand, while pushing her awaywith his other hand and arm, a
case of true ambivalence.
In a remarkably simple but nonetheless crucial experimen-
tal study of eight patients undergoing split-brain surgery
J. Bogen discovered limitations in both their writing and their
&awing abilities. Following the operation, the right side of the
body is controlled by the LH and vice versa. Therefore, perfor-
mances carried out by the right hand result fiom LH actMty,
and performances carried out by the left hand are related to the
activities of the RH. These patients, who were all right-handed,
eryerienced a reduced capacity to wdte (dysgraphia) with
their left hands but not with their right hands. They also
eperienced a reduced capacity to copy figures (dyscopia)
with the right hand, but not with the left. The dysgraphia-
dyscopia phenomena are illustrated in Figure 1 by responses
of one of the split-brain patients. To measure dysgraphia, a
written model of the word, 'Sunday' was presented. The patient
was able to copy this word with his right hand (and LH) but
could manage only a crude'S A with his left hand (and RH).
His severe dyscopia is illustrated by his effort to copy a cross
and a solid cube. He copied the figures quite well with his left
hand, butwith his right hand showed no configurational ability.
It would appear that he started at the top (line segment 1) and
then proceeded dockrarise. He drew the first seven lines correctly;
butattheend ofline 7 (the'bottom'line), he made awrongturn,
leftward, instead ofup upward and to the right. It is as if the left
side ofthe cross fell offits axis between lines 7 and 8. It appears as
ifhe grasps the figrue as a sequence of lines thatturn either to the
left or right, but made one wrong turn. This could have been an
effort at linear direction finding, but it most certainlywas not an
exercise in gestalt completion. For the cube, it is as if he had
merely used his left-hemisphere recognition of a number of
connected lines, and then made a visual gesture of stacldng
some of them up. He showed no configrrational ability to
recognize the cube as a whole or gestalt.
-eA glfls
Left (using the printed Left
'Sunday'above as a model) Model Right
Figure I At the left side of the figure, dysgraphia in the left hand (and right hemisphere) illustrated by the inability of a commissurotomy patient to
write the word "Sunday" with his left hand (and right hemisphere). At the right, dyscopia in the right hand (and left hemisphere) illustrated by a
patient who, while able to copy models of a cross and a cube with his left hand (and right hemisphere), failed to do so with his right hand (and left
hemisphere). Reproduced irom J Bogen (1969) The other side of the brain l: Dysgraphia and dyscopia following cerebral commissutotomy. Bulletin
ol the Los Angeles Neurological Societies,vol.34, Figure 5b, p. 83.
T

llandwriting and Greativity 59.1
Alexithymia, Creativity, and the Split Brain
Klaus Hoppe and j. Bogen found alexithymia - a cognitive-
affective disturbance involving a lack of words for feelings, in
twelve commissurotomized patients. Alexithymia literally
means 'no words for feelings.' A better term would have been
the existing Creek work, a-thymo-aleila, which means 'no feel-
ings for words.' By analogy, the problem of the color-blind
person is not a lack of words for colors, but rather a lack of
colors for words. The alexithymic person has difficuhv describ-
ing his or her feelings to other persons. There is a difficuln'in
verbally identi$,ing feelings but also in distinguishing feeling
from bodily sensations. There is a lack of slrnbolizrtions,
termed 'asyrnbollexia'by Hoppe in 1985, and an impoverish-
ment of fantasy life, resulting in a utilitarian, operational mode
of thinking. The opposite of alexithyrnia, called'sgnbollexia' b1'
Hoppe, is apt to be taken for granted in the everyday world but
must be considered a form of creativity in its own right. Accord-
ing to interhemispheric transfer deficit theory alexithymia
results fiom a physical or functional disconnection of the two
hemispheres, such that the cognitive representations of negative
alfects (of the RH) cannot be articulated in words (bythe LH).
J. J. Bogen and C. Bogen (1969:201) have argued thar an
interaction benveen the modes of thought of the two sides of
the brain is necessary for creative thinking. They suggest that
"to demonstrate that division of the corpus callosum leads to
a Ioss of creativity, we need some measure of creativity."
Handrrriting pror-ided such a measure in a further alexithy-
mia study carried out by TenHouten et al. in 1985, which
included eight of the twelve split-brained patients of the
Hoppe-Bogen stud,v and eight precision-matched control sub-
jects. All 16 subjects were shown a 3-minute videotaped film
Commissurotomy
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592 Handwriting and Creativity
four times. The film's two scenes depicted, with rnusic and
visual images but no words, the deaths of a baby and of a
boy. AIier the second showing of this film, all subiects were
instructed to write four sentences expressing what they felt
about the film. Small samples of the handwriting of the sub-
jects are shown in Figure 2. The commissurotomized patients,
in comparison to controls, were described by Psl,chogram
variables as having less form and arrangement in the elabora-
tion of their writing's upper zone and they wrote in a less
expressive way. They were relatively constricted in their expres-
sion of self, as their graphic gestures lacked individual distinc-
tiveness. Their script lacked rhlthm and coordination of
movements, organization, and trizonal dynamics. In addition
to its arrhythmic quality, their handwriting lacked an effective
articulation of the letters u,ith connecting strokes, which
according to Anthony, indicates a lack of'creativeness of
the graphic expression.' Patients were infirm in their rvriting
stroke (ductus) and showed an arrhythmic alternation of
pressure and release. Here they can be said to lack conuol
of sensuous expression. Their writing lacked consistencv in
the slant of the letters. There is inadequate control over align-
ment and direction of lines and spaces between lines. And
finally, there was a general irregularity in these patients' script.
The handwriting samples were scored on the Psychogram by a
professional graphologist, Marc Seifer, who u,as told only the
age and sex ofthe writers (standard procedure in graphology).
The six variables classified as indicators of creativity were inter-
correlated, with the result that al1 correlations but those
between Organization and Upper Zone Height w,ere positive.
A factor analysis of this correlation matrix resulted in a two-
factor solution, meaning that there are two latent, abstract
concepts which might explain the correlatior-rs.
Aspirations and 0rganizati0n Measurement
The two upper zone variables - Upper Zone Elaboration and
Upper Zone Height - joined Expressiveness in the first factor.
Anthony defines 'aspiration' as a desire for the realization of
values - of "ideals, ambitious intellectuality, pow,er, honour,
excellence . . ." (1977:3). He argues, "Craphologically, it is com-
monly reflected by the upper zone elaboration .. . and upper
zone height (. . . interest and aspirations above the daily routine,
the intellectual guiding principle)" (1977: 3). Anthony defines
Expressiveness as "those graphic movements which are'suffi-
ciently distinctive to differentiate one individual from another.'
These can include a flair for d;mamic design and spontaneous
movements on the positive side, or by a stulti$uing rigidity
and static immobiliqz on the negative" (1977: 3). This three-
variable factor was named Creative Aspiration. The second factor
attracted the other three intellect-aspirations-creativity sector
variables: Organization, Simplification, and Originaliry.
Organization refers to the writer's overall use of space and
movement in time (ease of forward motion). Here, the emphasis
is on form and design; figure and ground; and uniry coherence,
and coordination. If 'creativity is defined, as in Anthony, as "the
ability to produce new forms, to restructure stereotyped situa-
tions, to invent or innovate, to redefine, to improvise" (7977:3),
then good organization can be interpreted as a rather global
measure of creatMty. Anthony states that, "high scores for
simplification and originality . . . are indicative of creativity"
(1977: 3). Simplification of form means economic shortcuts in
writing seeking economy of time and motiorl and seeking what
is essential. Originality has the commonsense meaning of
the term, here referring to "spontaneity ...'and creativity in the
handling of space, form, and movement" The three variables
forming this factorwere together named Creative Organization.
The person ofhigh creative aspiration is apt to be known for his
orher original ideas; the person ofhigh creative organization not
only has creative ideas, but possesses the methodological and
organizational skills to turn such ideas into obiective creations.
lntentionality Measures
The commissurotomized patients, as hlpothesized above,
showed significantly lower scores for Creative Aspiration and
for Creative Organization than did their precision-matched
normal controls. They were lower than controls for overall
measures of other sectors as well - for Goal Direction, Libidi-
na-l Energy, Expression of Feelings, Control, and Script Quality
(Form Level and Functional Produaivity). A'second-order'
factor analysis, using six sector-level variables, led to the dis-
covery of a possible lack of intentionality in these patients.
In both alexithymia and in some psychosomatic disorders
there is an impoverished level of relations to obiects and
goals, and a lack of dynamic energy in relation to these oblects.
This lack of intentionality degrades one's ability to sustain
focus. The data, while only exploratory and based on samples
ordinarily considered inadequate for multivariate statistical
analpis, suggest th4t a person predisposed to act with inten-
tionality can be expected to show, in his or her handwriting,
the following features:
1. an ability to integrate intentions with actions in a fluent and
rhythmic manner;
2. good alignment conool, indicated by parallel lines that are
unwavering and straight - here reflected in a sense ofdirec-
tion and orderliness - and an effective use of time, all
suggesting a functional integrity toward the fulfilment of
obiectives;
3. writing that shows a naturalness and spontaneity in volun-
tary control of size, pressure, form, and arrangemenq
4. writing that is firm. with rhythmic alternation of tension
and release in pressure and stroke (an elastic and flexible
stroke shows meaningful functioning the making of an
effective'impression' on the world); and
5. contractions and release that are balanced and rhythmic in
movernent, disuibution, and form, all of which indicate an
ability to perform productively.
Note in &is description the importance of rhythm (.the
strongest single variable' for commissurotomy-control group
differences). The commissurotomy patients' handwriting
had, as global features, Iack ofcoordination and rhythm, inten-
tionality, and goal-directedness. Graphological variables contri-
buting to Intentionality induded, in addition to three creativity
rariables (Upper Zone Elaboration, Upper Zone Height, and
Expressiveness): Rhythm, Trizonal Dynamics (psychical energy,
goal-oriented behavior), Firmness of Ductus (the control of
meaningful functioning, or making an 'impression' on the
environment), Connectedness (ability to connect experiences

I
Handwriting and Greativity 593
purposefully), Fluctuation (which integrates intentions with
actions in a fluent and rhythmic manner), Siant Consistency,
Alignment Control (indicating functional integrity toward
the fulfilment of oblectives), and Regularity (movement and
arrangement volitionally controlled by the writer, an ability to
concentrate, and firmness and resolution). On the sector level,
data analysis indicated that intentionality is primarily a joint
function of two sectors, goal direction and emotional release.
An overall measure of intentionality was positively correlated
both with Creative Aspiration and with Creative Organization.
These results have implications for the study of creativity and
of pathological lack of creativity. On the basis of other than
graphological analyrsis, in the same study it was found that
following the splitting apart of the leli and right hernispheres
ofthe brain, patients had a degraded experience ofsl,rnbols.
These split-brained patients, in comparison to precision-
matched normal control subjects, used few affectladen words
(a face valid index of alexithl,rnia). Their relatively Iiequent
auxiliary verbs suggested a passive and indirect personal style;
and they used relatively few adiectives, suggesting speech that is
flat, dull, uninvolved, and lacking in color and expression.
Further, they were found relatively less apt to fantasize or
imagine s)rynbols (of the filmic stimulus). There was an overa-ll
Iack of creativity in the content of their spoken and written
verbal productions. These patients have been described as dull,
flat, colorless, inexpressive, passive, indirect, lacking fantasy,
unimaginative, unresponsive to symbols, and describing cir-
cumstances of events rather than feelings about these events.
The evidence suggests, albeit indirectly, a la& of creadvity
in the content of their spoken and written verbal productions.
They symbolized in a discursive wa, using mainly secondary-
process thought as opposed to a presentational structure con-
sistent with primary-process thought. Hoppe (1985) noticed
concreteness in their symbolizations, with an emphasis on
stereot,?ic denotations. The strongest overall result of the
handwriting analysis was that, for all of the eight pairs of
subjects, patients showed less emotional release than did con-
rols, which replicates the earlier finding of alexithymia follow-
ing cerebral commissurotomy.
The hlpotheses advanced on the basis of graphological
variables, distinguishing the handwriting of patients and con-
trols, were consistently supported by other data. The split-brain
patients showed a stong dysgraphia in their left hands. They
also showed a strong dyscopia in their right hands. Their
Iinear-thinking left hemispheres were not informed by their
right hemispheres' affective, expressive, and spatial crearive
mode of thought. This interhemispheric transfer deficit
resulted in what can be termed an erpression dysgraphia rn tllle
righthand, a phenomenon that had not been detected earlier.
The split-brained patients did to some extent, however, express
and syrnbolize emotions, primarily in a subconscious, negative
way, through their handwriting. The alexithyrnia of these
patients is a matter of degree, and their LHs are hardly devoid
of affective expression, especially for positive emotions.
Research with split-brained patients shows that their RHs are
able to signal their LHs, possibly by means of brainsrem
connections. In two of these patients researchers found an
'affective aura' rapidly communicated fiom RH to LH (see
TenHouten, 1994; TenHouten et a1., 1988). There was in
this project a continuity of results based on graphology and
on several other content-analytic measures. The criterion vari-
ables, it should be noted, were interpreted not as personality or
character attdbutes, but rather as cognitive structures.
Smith's Study of Handwriting and Creativity
In one other study of relationships behveen handwdting and
ceativity in 71 fifth-graders, Willa Smith devised a measure
of creativity in 1998. the Graphological Creativity euotient
(GCQ), based on the graphological traits spontaneiry openness,
flexibility, intuition, autonom, self-acceptance, complo<ity, and
persevemnce. Not surprisingly, an index based on these edectic
criteria did not predict across several measures ofcreativity, but a
weakpositive correlation of 0.30 (p:0.01) was found between
the GCQ and the Torrance Test of Crearive Thinking (TICI),
and between Complority and TTCT (p:0.05), when the orher
creativity variables were controlled. Generally, the results were
weak and nonsignifi cant.
Handwriling Sensitive to Brain Damage
Cerebral commissurotomy is a radical surgery but handwriting
can be distorted even by minor brain damage, ofien without
the writer being aware of the change in his or her script. It can
be hypothesized that insofar as a head iniury is potentially life-
threatening it is one's signature that is the aspect of handwrit-
ing that is most apt to be affected. As an example, following a
left-occipital injury sustained in an automobile accident, my
own signature underwent three changes. First, there emerged a
greatly simplified, and sometimes eliminated, first r of Warren.
The dropped r was always the Ieltmost one, as if rr symbolized
the Ieft and right cerebral hemispheres: this was corrected only
with a protracted, conscious effort to do so. Second, a dent
emerged at the height in the upper loop of the , in Houten.
Graphologists uniformly regard the upper zone of script with
higher cognitive functioning, so that this upper-zone dented
t would be interpreted as symbolizing a pathology of higher,
cerebral functions. This script feature lasted less than a year.
And third, the an of Houten was essentially dropped, as were
other letters and numbers at the ends of words or number
strings. This was likely a manifestation of a mild form of
unilateral neglect of the right visual field, not uncommon
following left sided occipital lobe damage. It is important
that we follow Beyerstein's (1992: 392-398) sage advice. tha!
just because the brain is responsible for our psychological
makeup as well as our writing, it does not follow that "script
formation necessarily reveals deep seoets about our personal
habits, talents, and predilections." Relationships between min-
ute details ofwriting and social, psychological, and neurophys-
iological phenomena would appear to exist, but this is no
guarantee that graphology can become an effective evaluatii,e
or predictive tool. Certainly, there is no aprioribasisto assume
that writing deserves any special status as a window on person-
ality or character.
From Graphology to Graphonomics
Handwriting analysis will a-lways have a small following on the
part of interested persons who are apt to also be practitioners

of nonscientific knowledge practices such as astrology, the
Tarot, and the I Ching. Persons can indeed experience some
insight into the self as a result of having their handwriting
'read' by an adept practitioner of graphology. As one of these
authors, Santoy (1994: 230) proudly concluded, ,,Any novice
who has studied this book carefully is now capable of analyz-
ing the handwriting of his friends or acquaintances.,, To assert
that a written r with a "short, tapered horizontal stroke,, reveals
a person with "Caustic humor; sarcasm; destructive tenden-
cies" is not science, but it does possess a kind of synthetic
rationality. It is rooted not in science but in sympathetic
magic. The problem with this 'key to personality' level of
graphology is that, whatever clues are detectdd about an indi_
vidual's handwriting script, there is no way to validare that the
dues measure what it is claimed they measure, and the same
dues can be interpreted in wildly different wa1n. There is no
doubt that graphologists have overestimated the quality and
value of graphology. As the same time, there is no doubt that
many graphologists are highly insightful, and are able to make
use of detailed features of handwritten script to constnrct a
highly usef,rl overview of a person's personality and character
structure.
Handwriting is a phenomenon of the world, and as such is
subiect to scientific investigation. Advances in the study of
handwriting focused both on pathology and productivity of
mind, can lead to advances in the scientific study of handwrit_
ing from which cognitive and affective mental structures can
be studied in normal and pathological populations and across
cultures. and writing systems. Handwriting is primarily com-
municative, and. tlerefore involves social relationships with
other societal members. Graphology can be understood only
through multi-level analysis, of the mental, the social, and the
biological. In fact, such an interdisciplinary enterprise has been
underw4r for two decades, not under the name ofgraphology
but rather as 'graphonomics.' This term, graphonomics, was
chosen by an association ofpsychologists, bioengineers, phy-
siologiss, computer scientists, cognitive scientists, and engi-
neers. The Intemational Graphonomics Society was founded
in 1985. No graphologists were invited to join this Society, and
their conference proceedings cite no graphologists. Moreover,
there was no mention of the possibility that handwriting might
be correlated with personality. In commenting on this devel-
opment, Beyerstein (1992 415n2) observed that, in perusing
published works by graphologists, he found that none of the
authors "seem conversant with the published research ofthis
highly relevant scientific organization." The scientific analysis
of handwriting, graphonomics, is too important to be leli to
graphologists.
See also: Personal Creativity.
Further Reading
Anthony D (1977) Psychogran 1ulde Book. New york: pantheon.
Beyerstein BL (1992) Handwriting is brainwork: So what? ln: Beyerstein BL and
Beyerstein DF (eds.) The Wrlte Stuff; Evaluation of Graphology - The Study ol
Handwrlting Anallsis. Bufla o, NY: prometheus.
Bogen JE and Bogen GM (1969) Ihe other side of the brain. /i/. The corpus callosun
and creativity. Bulletin of the Los Angeles Neurological Socieiles
34' 191-221.
Brannan lVlG (2004) Twmty Remarkabte W0nen; Sr/en Thrlugh fheir Handwiilng.
LiIre Biver CA: l,rlle Biver Press.
De Kerckhove D and Lumsden CJ (1988) TheAlphabet and the Braln..The Lateraiization
of Writlng. Berlln. Springer-Verlag.
Edwards A and Armitage P (1992) An experiment t0 test the discriminatjng ability oi
grapn0logists Perslnatily and lnditidual Dilterences 13: 69-74.
Furnham A, Chamorro-Premuzic T, and Callahan I (2003) Does graphology predict
personallty and intelligence? /ndividual Difierences Research 1: 7g_94.
Hoppe KD (1985) l\4ind and spirituality. Symbollexia, empathy and G0d-representat 0n.
Bullelin 0l the Natl1nal Gulld of Catholic psychtulris1s 9: 353_378.
Hoppe KD and Bogen jE (1977) Alexithymia in twelve commissurotomzed patients.
Psycholherapy and Psychosomatics 28 l4B-b5.
Roman K (1952) Handwrlling. Key t0 persanality. New york. pantheon.
Smith WW (1988) Creativity and Handwriting. A Study of the Relationship between
Handwriting and Creatlvity in Flfth-grade Chitdren.EdD Dissertati0n ATT-8612082,
Amherst: Universlty 0f Massachusetts.
Taylor M (1983) The bilateral cooperative model of reading. ln: Taylor I and Taylor M
(eds.) fhe Psychology of Reading. New york: Academic press.
TenHouten WD (1994) Creativity, intentionairty, and atexithymia. A graphotogica
analysis oi spJit-brained patients and normal controls. ln: Bunco l\,4D, Hoppe KD,
and Shaw M (eds.) Creativity and,4llect. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
TenHouten WD, Hoppe KD, Bogen JE, and Walter D0 (19S5) Atexthymra. An
experimental study of cerebral commissurotomy pat ents and normal control
subjecls. Anerican Journal af Psychialry 143, 31 2-31 6.
TenHouten WD, Seifer M, and Seigel P (1988) Alexithymia and the spllt brain. Vil.
Evidence from graplrological signs. ln: Hoppe KD (Guest ed.) Henisphuic
SWcializatiln, At'lect, and Creatlvity (psychiatric Clinics of North America Series).
Philadelphia, PA: Saunders.
Relevant Websites
www.grapflolo0y.ws/graphology-world.htm - Graphologists and graph0l0gy.
www.graph0nomics.0rg - lnternational Graphonomics Society.