Remediation of deficits affecting different components of the spelling process

Abstract

Background: There have been relatively few studies concerned with the treatment of spelling deficits. Among these, there have been a small number that have targeted specific components of the spelling process. Although most of these studies report success using treatments that involve repeated spelling and/or copy, the results have been mixed, especially as concerns the generalisation of treatment benefits to untreated items. Aims: This investigation was designed to examine the responsiveness to the same treatment protocol of deficits affecting different cognitive mechanisms of the spelling process. Methods & Procedures: We applied the same delayed-copy treatment protocol to two individuals with selective deficits of the orthographic output lexicon and the graphemic buffer. The two individuals were otherwise matched in terms of the severity of their deficits and their general cognitive profiles. Outcomes & Results: Both individuals exhibited long-lasting word-specific benefits from the treatment. However, they differed in that the graphemic buffer deficit exhibited generalisation to untreated words, whereas the orthographic output lexicon did not. Conclusions: The absence of presence of generalisation effects in response to the successful treatment of target items is determined by the specific cognitive component/s that constitute the source of the deficit.