What does hemineglect syndrome often cause individuals to ignore?

Hemineglect syndrome, also known as unilateral neglect, primarily affects the ability to perceive and respond to stimuli on one side of space, particularly after damage to the right hemisphere of the brain. Individuals with this condition often demonstrate a marked lack of awareness or attention to the left side of their visual field.

This occurs because the right hemisphere is responsible for processing information from both visual fields, while the left hemisphere predominantly processes information from the right visual field. When the right hemisphere is impaired, as seen in conditions like stroke, individuals lose the ability to attend to the left side, leading them to ignore objects and events on that side. This neglect can manifest in various ways, such as failing to eat food on the left side of a plate or not noticing people approaching from the left.

In contrast, other options such as ignoring the right side or both sides do not accurately reflect the common presentations of hemineglect syndrome. Thus, the primary characteristic of this syndrome is the neglect of the left side of the visual field in individuals, particularly due to right hemisphere injury.