Organizational deficits in dyslexia: Possible frontal lobe dysfunction

Abstract

We examined the organizational skills of normal and dyslexic subjects on a battery of cognitive tasks. Twenty dyslexic and 20 normal readers were administered five language and visuospatial measures and compared on both quantitative performance scores and qualitative problem‐solving strategies. Relative to control subjects, dyslexics were impaired on verbal fluency, recalled fewer words on a verbal learning task and had difficulty solving conceptual problems and completing mazes. In addition, dyslexic subjects had difficulty generating and executing efficient problem‐solving strategies. Even when presented with a goal‐directed, organized approach, dyslexic subjects continued to employ less efficient strategies. It is suggested that the deficient strategy formulation and execution in dyslexic individuals may result from primary frontal lobe dysfunction.