Handwriting is a practice that improves our cognitive and emotional health.Have you ever desperately searched for your keys or your mobile phone only to find that it was in your hands? Well, it is very common to search for things, answers or tools that are usually so close that we cannot see them. This is the case with being able to write by hand as a therapeutic technique.
It is interesting that countries such as Canada in 2023 and some US states in 2024 have reintroduced cursive writing into their school curricula . Why is this? The truth is that, whether cursive writing is used or not, handwriting has demonstrated a number of benefits for both cognitive functions and mental health.
Cognitive and Emotional Benefits of Handwriting
In January 2024, the British Broadcasting Corporation will publish the current mandatory requirement in California to teach cursive writing in schools, a practice that had been eradicated since 2010. “Writing in cursive can activate specific neural pathways that facilitate and optimize learning and language development in general” as explained by neuroscientist Claudia Aguirre (2024, British Broadcasting Corporation).
Karim James (2018), professor of psychological and brain sciences at Indiana University, conducted a study in which she shows that handwriting stimulates areas of the brain that remain inactive when writing using a keyboard, thus promoting the activation of different neural networks involved in the process of learning letters.
Writing using computers, cell phones or other devices involves the same mechanical movement that is automated over time for the expression of different letters and punctuation marks, unlike handwriting which involves creating different shapes, movements and organizing space.
Handwriting allows for greater depth of information by activating a series of complex cognitive functions that allow for selection, ordering and synthesis, strengthening memory and analytical capacity. The findings of Mueller and Oppenheimer (2014) allow us to conclude that when writing on computers or tablets there is a tendency to reproduce information verbatim, bypassing the aforementioned processes and therefore making a more superficial integration .
Concrete benefits of handwriting
- It strengthens the ability to use logic, associate ideas and thoughts, allowing the process of understanding, abstraction and logic of what is written to occur, helping to order and organize information.
- Putting thoughts on paper gives shape to ideas, makes them tangible and helps express emotions. When I write by hand, I draw thoughts and solutions.
- It allows to identify cognitive distortions and irrational beliefs, contributing to cognitive restructuring.
- It provides us with information that strengthens self-knowledge and emotional intelligence, detecting patterns in our emotions, feelings and behavior.
- A coding occurs in the brain that allows the elaboration of emotions associated with certain experiences.
- Release pent-up emotions and feelings by observing with a little more perspective or distance.
- Activates critical thinking.
- Strengthens concentration on the present moment.
- It promotes learning, which is why it can generate new neural connections.
- Sharpens the ability to analyze and synthesize.
- Improves memory capacity, preventing diseases or organic pathologies.
- Fight stress and anxiety by relieving emotions.
- It develops creativity and allows for projection.
- Handwriting is also a concentration and relaxation technique.
- Improves internal and external observation skills, enabling better decision-making.
- It allows you to set goals and contributes to achieving them.
- It slows down thought, giving it greater depth.