STRATEGIES OF RHYTHM PERCEPTION IN DEVELOPMENTAL DYSLEXIA

Background: The perception of short time intervals (>1Hz) plays an important role in coping with rhythm exercises prevalent throughout the course of music education. Developmental dyslexia IS associated with rhythmic difficulties, including impaired perception of beat patterns. Previous research suggests the existence of two different rhythm perception strategies: interval or entrainment-based. The aim of this research was to determine whether difficulties with rhythm tasks experienced by dyslexic children are connected with a preference for a specific rhythm perception strategy. Material/Methods: Non-dyslexic (N=61) and dyslexic (N=48) groups were recruited for the study. To assess rhythm perception strategies, we used an experimental procedure developed by McAuley and colleagues. This method involves listening to the sequences of rhythmically presented tones with the last tone shifted forwards or backwards in time. The participants were asked to judge if the presented sequences felt like 'slowing down or 'speeding up'. Results: Our data supports the view that entrainment-based strategies are atypical in dyslexia. These results are discussed in the context of a more general model of potential relationships between types of rhythm perception and improved language and literacy skills. Conclusins: The results of this research provided evidence that individual differences in rhythm perception strategies are not determined by dyslexia. Future research in this area is recommended, in order to explore other potential explanations for the existence of individual differences in perceiving rhythm.