Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Reversal errors (e.g., confusing b with d, or R with Я) are common in beginning readers and often persist in individuals with developmental dyslexia due to mirror invariance-an evolutionary-old perceptual tendency of processing mirror images as equivalent. This study investigated whether dyslexic adults still struggle with mirror-image discrimination when processing reversible letters (i.e., differing only by orientation; e.g., d, b, p) and nonreversible letters (i.e., differing also in shape; e.g., f, t, r). In a masked priming lexical decision task, one letter of the prime was manipulated by letter-type (reversible, nonreversible) and prime-condition: identity (e.g., judo, zero), control (judo, zero), mirrored-letter (jubo, zero), or rotated-letter (jupo, zero). Both dyslexic and neurotypical readers showed identity priming effects: faster recognition of target-words preceded by identity than control primes. Neurotypical readers also showed mirror and rotation costs, regardless of letter-type: slower word recognition after mirrored- or rotated-letter primes than an identity prime. In contrast, and for nonreversible letters only, dyslexics were as fast in recognizing target-words preceded by identity as by mirrored-letter primes (qualified by Bayesian statistics). These findings suggest that, despite extensive reading experience, orthographic processing by dyslexic college students remains residually sensitive to mirror invariance.
Source: Scientific Reports
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,690
Awards: Centro de Investigação em Ciência Psicológica, Centro de Investigação em Ciência Psicológica, G2911338957, G4007354762, G5251420552, G5454278309, LEMON, Aprendizagem de LEtras através do treino MOtor: Especialização neurocognitiva para o código escrito investigada com eletrofisologia, eye-tracking, e ferramentas computacionais, Reconhecimento visual da palavra e processamento ortográfico: Investigação e contributos da Psicologia Cognitiva, Neurociências, e Simulação Computacional
OpenAlex ID: W4415586478