Cite as:
Ahissar M, Biron T, 2010, "Reading and attention disorder and audiovisual discrimination profile" Perception 39 ECVP Abstract Supplement, page 59

Reading and attention disorder and audiovisual discrimination profile

M Ahissar, T Biron

Reading difficulties and attention disorder tend to concur. However, it is still unclear whether functional mechanisms are shared. We now examined auditory and visual frequency discrimination among university students with neither type of difficulty (control), both difficulties (ADHD+RD) and only an attentional difficulty (ADHD). The latter group was defined by accurate reading. This division yielded two ADHD groups with very different auditory profiles and more subtle visual differences. Notably, accurate readers (control and ADHD) had similar verbal working memory and similar discrimination thresholds in several 2-tone frequency discrimination tasks. Auditory and verbal memory thresholds were correlated. The ADHD+RD group performed significantly worse in these tasks. Visual impairments were more subtle, and largely similar among both ADHD groups. Yet, the ADHD (only) group was unique in having low-thresholds when tested with a spatial 2-alternative forced choice task (“which part of the screen, upper/lower, contains higher-frequency gratings?”) with no repeated reference stimulus across trials, and high thresholds when tested with a temporal 2-alternative forced choice version of this task. Thresholds in the temporal task were significantly correlated with their reading rate. We propose that the audiovisual discrimination profile provides a good characterization of individuals’ reading and attention difficulties.
[Supported by Niederzachsen grant given to Ahissar & Koenig collaboration]

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