Auditory information processing and modality effects in good and poor readers

Abstract

Research suggests that reading disabilities result from phonological processing deficits. Penney’s (1989) separate-stream hypothesis suggests that phonological deficits in poor readers may be linked to defective auditory information processing and a deficient A (auditory) code in short-term memory. The study reported here tested the hypothesis that good and poor readers, at the university level, differ in their auditory short-term memory and auditory information processing capabilities. Subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Education Battery – Revised (Woodcock & Johnson, 1989) were used to measure reading and auditory processing skills. To test short-term memory recall, lists of four to nine digits were presented auditorily or visually. The usual modality effect was observed for the good readers with auditory presentation producing higher recall. In contrast, for the poor readers the modality effect was observed only for the last serial position; for the middle serial positions visual sequential recall was higher than auditory recall, producing a reverse modality effect. The results of the Woodcock-Johnson subtests indicated that the poor readers did have deficient auditory processing capabilities.