Administered ECT to the dominant (left) side of 9 depressed patients (mean age, 48.3 yrs). Nine matched depressed patients (mean age, 50.2 yrs) received ECT to the nondominant (right) side. Degree of depression was assessed by the Self-Rating Depression Scale. Neuropsychological tests (tests of left hemisphere function included Digit Sequence Learning and Controlled Word Association; tests of right hemisphere function included Judgment of Line Orientation and Facial Recognition) showed that the right hemispheric functions were more frequently abnormal as compared to left hemispheric (dominant) functions in the pre-ECT tests. ECTs delivered to either the right or left side improved right hemispheric functions when the depression was ameliorated. Results indicate that in depression right hemispheric functions are initially disturbed and ECT, instead of being deleterious to these functions, tends to improve them. (37 ref)