BPsych (Honours)

PhD Candidate, School of Psychology

Contact details for Ms Gry Lilleskaret g.lilleskaret@griffith.edu.au

Research topic title:

Global motion processing in adult skilled and poor readers: An investigation of neural and perceptual functions at V5

Description

Past research has demonstrated an association between visual motion processing and reading, with poor readers commonly displaying reduced sensitivity to global motion. The current study aimed to determine whether this deficit is best explained by a sensory deficit, which results from a structural deficit in the magnocellular system (e.g., Talcott et al., 1998), or by a higher-order perceptual deficit (revealed only when the perceptual difficulty of the task is high) (e.g., Hill & Raymond, 2002). Neural and perceptual processes at V5 were investigated using motion extraction, integration, and simultaneous motion processing tasks. A control task assessing local motion processing was also administered. Participants were adult skilled and poor readers drawn from a university population. Preliminary results show the temporal processing deficit in dyslexia is multifaceted with poor readers displaying both sensory and perceptual motion processing deficits at V5, while not differing on the control task. The results are important both for our theoretical understanding of the underlying causes of dyslexia, as well as for reading assessment and remediation.

Supervisors

Dr Elizabeth Conlon (Principal) / Dr Karen Murphy (Associate)