The effects of behavioral vision training on multiple aspects of visual functioning in myopic adults

Twenty myopic adults were randomly assigned to either a behavioral visual acuity training program or to a no-treatment control group in order to assess changes in several aspects of visual behavior. Measures were obtained both pre- and posttraining for a number of variables. These included recognition and resolution visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, perceived clarity and confidence of responses, and stimulus duration. Results indicated that training subjects significantly improved on all three measures of visual acuity: recognition acuity, resolution acuity, and contrast sensitivity. Improvements in acuity were associated with significant improvements in the perceived clarity of the stimuli but not in the confidence of the subject's response. These data expand our knowledge concerning the effectiveness of behavioral training programs in improving visual acuity in myopia. The potential utility of such programs is discussed.