Behavioral laterality drawn in self-images

429 participants including elementary school children and high school students drew three pictures of themselves doing habitual actions: brushing the teeth, using chopsticks, and throwing a ball. Whether the hand used in the pictures corresponded to the actual preferred hand was assessed. Analyzing the drawings of 396 participants who stated a right-hand preference, the sex difference was significant as were changes across ages (grades). The number and percentage of the drawings of real images (corresponding to the actual preferred hand) were larger for boys than for girls and increased across grades. Girls and younger participants tended to draw mirror-image figures of their own actions.