Is the Question of the Role of Visual Deficits as a Cause of Reading Disabilities a Closed One? Comments on Hulme

Abstract

Hulme (1988) has argued that it is most unlikely there is a causal link between visual processing deficits and specific reading disabilities as suggested by Lovegrove, Martin, and Slaghuis (1986). This article presents a number of arguments proposing that Hulme's claim is premature. The major argument is based on predictions about the visual conditions under which disabled readers should make errors if the argument presented by Lovegrove et al. is at least partially valid. Data are reported showing that the mode of visual presentation which optimises performance in normal readers produces the worst performance in disabled readers. The need for additional research investigating possible relationships between aspects of phonemic awareness and vision is argued.