Language Disorders Across Modalities: The Case of Developmental Dyslexia

Developmental language impairment is a risk factor for other developmental disorders. Prospective studies following children with early developmental language impairment have shown a striking link with subsequent learning disabilities, especially developmental dyslexia (Bishop & Adams, 1990; Catts, 1993). In studies comparing dyslexic children with language-impaired children, both groups are specifically characterized by deficits in phonological analysis (Liberman et al., 1974; Wagner & Torgerson, 1987).