[An example of how to measure the relation between developmental dyslexia and illiteracy]

The ability to read and the phonological fitness of 89 youth (average age of 21.3 years) having difficulty with social and professional integration were examined. We observed that 64% of them (n = 57) had difficulty in reading. The results of the phonological and reading tests showed that developmental dyslexia constitutes, for 56% of the subjects (n = 32), or for 36% of the population of youth with difficulties, the explanatory framework for the delay of acquisition of these capacities. Reading difficulties for these youth were significantly linked to an alteration of the phonological treatment that effects: short-term verbal memory, auditory discrimination and meta-phonological fitness. The data tends to validate the hypothesis of the existence of a functional link between developmental dyslexia and illiteracy.