Mensah, C. , Smith-Spark, J. & Marchant, A.
London South Bank University
3 London South Bank University
Beside reading and writing difficulties, individuals with dyslexia experience broader cognitive problems. Prospective memory (PM) signifies remembering to execute a planned action after a delay. Evidence of dyslexia-related effects on PM indicates difficulties, especially when self-initiated or time-based PM (TBPM) is required. Aim: The current research employed an established ecologically valid task to obtain a more in-depth understanding of processes contributing to dyslexia-related deficits. Method: 30 adults with dyslexia and 30 adults without dyslexia performed The Dresden breakfast task (Altgassen, Koban, & Kliegel, 2012), a laboratory-based simulated meal preparation task. This task requires the setting of the table and preparing food items following specific rules (e.g., placing a gallon of milk on the table before placing 2 plates). Six subtasks comprising four TBPM and two EBPM instructions were performed within a seven minutes timeframe. Results: Participants with dyslexia performed significantly worse in (i) number of tasks completed, (ii) number of TBPM tasks completed and (iii) rule adherence. Performances were similar across groups in (i) number of EBPM tasks completed, and (ii) total number of clock of checks. Conclusion: The results indicate real-world impact of dyslexia on PM. They are discussed in view of current understanding of dyslexia-related PM deficits.