Reasoning and Dyslexia: is Visual Memory a Compensatory Resource?

Abstract

Effective reasoning is fundamental to problem solving and achievement in education and employment. Protocol studies have previously suggested that people with dyslexia use reasoning strategies based on visual mental representations, whereas non-dyslexics use abstract verbal strategies. This research presents converging evidence from experimental and individual differences perspectives. In Experiment 1, dyslexic and non-dyslexic participants were similarly accurate on reasoning problems, but scores on a measure of visual memory ability only predicted reasoning accuracy for dyslexics. In Experiment 2, a secondary task loaded visual memory resources during concurrent reasoning. Dyslexics were significantly less accurate when reasoning under conditions of high memory load and showed reduced ability to subsequently recall the visual stimuli, suggesting that the memory and reasoning tasks were competing for the same visual cognitive resource. The results are consistent with an explanation based on limitations in the verbal and executive components of working memory in dyslexia and the use of compensatory visual strategies for reasoning. There are implications for cognitive activities that do not readily support visual thinking, whether in education, employment or less formal everyday settings.

Executive functions in adults with developmental dyslexia

“…Bacon et al (2013) have found that adults with dyslexia are able to make use of rules and strategies when explicitly shown them but are less likely to find them independently. Indeed, a preference in dyslexia for visuo-spatial problem-solving strategies over verbal strategies (e.g., Bacon & Handley, 2010;Bacon, Handley & McDonald, 2007;Torgeson, 1977;von Károlyi, Winner, Gray & Sherman, 2003) may hinder the development of these key skills and have a negative impact on performance across a range of settings (Bacon & Handley, 2014). Explicitly directing people with dyslexia to these verbal regulatory reflective processes may prove beneficial to their EFs.…”

Aids for Dyslexia are Important Supporters of Life and Learning – Experiences of Finnish People with Dyslexia

“…Their brains work slightly differently than other people's brains (Tafti, Hameedy, & Banghal, 2009). It is important to realize that while the brains of people with dyslexia have weaker areas, they also have stronger areas that compensate the functioning of the weaker ones (Bacon & Handley, 2014). Moreover, the use of multiple senses can provide new opportunities to people with dyslexia (Brunswick, Martin, & Marzano, 2010) if a stronger sense is actively used, for example, in learning situations.…”

Reasoning and Reading in Adults. A New Reasoning Task for Detecting the Visual Impendance Effect

“…For instance, in deductive reasoning, Osana, Lacroix, Tucker, Idan, and Jabbour (2007) tested the association between specific types of text and reasoning, showing that the type of text affects reasoning skills. Likewise, some studies have investigated differences in reasoning task performance as a function of reading skills (Bacon & Handley, 2010;Bacon & Handley, 2014;Bacon, Parmentier, & Barr, 2013;Cromley, Snyder-Hogan & Luciw-Dubas, 2010). Moreover, it is shown that practice in extracting inferences from texts improves reading comprehension skills (Cromley et al, 2010).…”