Visual rule learning in children with dyslexia

Background: Rule learning (RL) is the ability to extract and generalize higher-order repetition-based structures. Children with Developmental Dyslexia (DD) often report difficulties in learning complex regularities in sequential stimuli, which might be due to the complexity of the rule to be learned. Learning high-order repetition-based rules represents a building block for the development of language skills. Aims: This study investigates the ability to extract and generalize simple, repetition-based visual rules (e.g., ABA) in 8–11-year-old children without (TD) and with a diagnosis of Development Dyslexia (DD) and its relationship with language and reading skills. Method: Using a forced-choice paradigm, children were first exposed to a visual sequence containing a repetition-based rule (e.g., ABA) and were then asked to recognize familiar and novel rules generated by new visual elements. Standardized language and reading tests were also administered to both groups. Results: The accuracy in recognizing rules was above chance for both groups, even though DD children were less accurate than TD children, suggesting a less efficient RL mechanism in the DD group. Moreover, visual RL was positively correlated with both language and reading skills. Conclusion: These results further confirm the crucial role of RL in the acquisition of linguistic skills and mastering reading abilities.