Allocation of visual attention in good and poor readers

Twelve children, who were classified as good or poor readers, and 4 adults were given a task used to measure the ability to direct attention across visual space. Accuracy in detecting briefly presented target letters (S or N) was measured as a function of whether a cue did or did not correctly predict target location. Results showed that adults and good readers were able to direct attention effectively when given a cue that correctly predicted the location of the target letter, whereas poor readers were not. Poor readers also produced lower accuracy rates when the cue preceded the target by 100 msec or less, but demonstrated equal accuracy when the asynchrony between cue and target was 150 msec or more. Right-visual-field enhancement was found in adults and good readers, but not in poor readers. These results are discussed within the framework of current theories of reading disability.