Case Western Reserve University’s Department of Psychological Sciences Assistant Professor Rita Obeid recently published a study in the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. The study, titled “Impaired Fine Motor Skills in Developmental Dyslexia: A Bayesian Meta-Analysis of 5 Decades of Research” features insights from:

Rita Obeid, Assistant Professor of Motor and Language Development in the Department of Psychological Sciences; C. Donnan Gravelle, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY; Nicolas Zapparrata, New Jersey City University, NJ; Catherine Messina, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY; and Patricia J. Brooks, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY

About the study

Purpose:
Individuals with developmental dyslexia frequently exhibit impairments that extend beyond reading. Numerous studies examine fine motor skill deficits in dyslexia. The current study used meta-analysis to examine whether individuals with dyslexia show differences in motor skills when compared to age-matched individuals with neurotypical development, while also exploring possible moderators of effects.

Method:
The team reported findings of a Bayesian hierarchical meta-analysis evaluating evidence of co-occurring motor skills deficits in dyslexia, using literature spanning 5 decades (1970–2025). Included reports compared dyslexic groups with age-matched neurotypical groups on various handwriting, other graphomotor, manual dexterity, speed fine motor, and motor composite tasks (N dyslexia = 3,113, N comparison = 4,521; Mage = 12.4 years, age range: 6.2–30.8 years).

To see the results and conclusion, read the article here