Date of Completion
12-9-2016
Embargo Period
12-8-2016
Advisors
Jim Magnuson, Dave Braze, Gerry Altmann, Whit Tabor
Field of Study
Psychological Sciences
Degree
Master of Science
Open Access
Open Access
Abstract
The link between phonological abilities and reading skills has been well-established in both typical and atypical language development. However, the nature of the phonological deficits in poor readers remains a debated topic. While poor readers have been mostly assumed to have underspecified or “fuzzy” phonological representations (Tallal et al., 1998), the opposite alternative, over-specified phonological representations, has also been hypothesized (Serniclaes, 2006). To examine the two phonological hypotheses, the current study used the eye-tracking paradigm in the study of Dahan et al. (2001) to investigate individuals’ sensitivity to subphonemic information in young adults with a wide range of reading abilities. Our findings suggested a trend of higher sensitivity to subphonemic information in lower-ability readers, consistent with the over-specification hypothesis. In addition, our sample with a lower range of socio-economic status highlighted the need to take environmental factors into consideration for theoretical and practical purposes in reading acquisition.
Recommended Citation
Li, Monica Y.C., "Subphonemic Sensitivity in Low Literacy Adults" (2016). Master's Theses. 1024.
https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/gs_theses/1024
Major Advisor
Jim Magnuson