Should you write by hand or type on a keyboard? Study shows which is better for the brain

Despite the fact that modern technology is gaining ground, scientists do not advise against discarding time-honored methods. A study has shown that handwriting can improve brain connections more than typing the same information on a keyboard.

Scientists also prove that repeatedly writing the same word in italics can trigger bad memories. Instead, the repetition of handwritten text promotes learning and memory, ScienceNews writes.

"The hand is the window to the mind," said German philosopher Immanuel Kant almost three hundred years ago. After all, we perceive the world with our eyes, but we feel it with our hands.

According to scientists, every contact, every touch creates a firework of connections in the brain and increases our mental activity, Leuchtturm1917 notes.

The study shows that "there is a fundamental difference in the organization of the brain for handwriting as opposed to typing," said Ramesh Balasubramaniam, a neuroscientist at the University of California, Merced.

Many previous studies have also shown that handwriting improves spelling accuracy, memorization, and understanding of concepts. Scientists believe that the slow process of writing letters and words gives people more time to process the material and learn.

It takes years for a person to learn how to connect individual letters in a smooth motion. It is this complex interplay of fine motor skills, abstraction, and imagination that makes handwriting so important. According to scientists, handwriting strengthens the connection between the right and left hemispheres of the brain.

According to experts, no keyboard can replace the valuable thinking and processing mechanisms that occur when we put letters on paper. Students get a deeper learning experience when they take notes by hand.

Scientists say that preschoolers develop language skills more easily with frequent use of pen and paper. And even words in a foreign language are better remembered the moment we write them down – no matter what language it is or how old we are.

Experts say that handwriting should not be left behind in the digital age. "Writing is very useful, especially for the young brain," said psychologist Audrey van der Meer.

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