Is schizophrenia a lateralized brain disorder? Editor's introduction

Abstract

Lateralization of brain function was established on the basis of clinical-pathological correlations over a century ago. In the past two decades, this line of research has attempted to link the complex behaviors evident in schizophrenia to the failure to develop and maintain a normal pattern of hemispheric activity. This issue of Schizophrenia Bulletin reviews and presents data from multiple perspectives of methods applied to the study of laterality in schizophrenia. Brain disorders affecting systems that modulate complex behavior are commonly related to laterality. Therefore, this dimension of brain function merits further investigation in schizophrenia.