Defining Developmental Dyslexia: An Overview of Etiological Theories and the Neurobiological Basis of the Disorder

Abstract

Researchers have long been debating the most accurate definition for developmental dyslexia, likely due to its complicated and unknown etiology, and its variability in expression. The phonological deficit theory, the cerebellar theory, and the magnocellular theory each argue the primary characteristics of dyslexia that inform their varying definitions. In this review, I explore what is known about developmental dyslexia, the research that supports its etiological theories as well as the interventions that address them. Though the evidence is correlational, new research indicates potential answers in the genetic association of dyslexia. Perhaps the causality of dyslexia is not as imperative as the proper intervention of its consequential reading difficulties.