| Abstract | Development of strong reading skills takes years of practice and instruction, but such skills are critical for future success academically, vocationally, and in everyday life. In spite of the early start to reading instruction in the United States, up to 15 percent of children fail to learn to read and approximately 21 percent of adults meet the Department of Education's criteria for low English literacy. One risk factor for poor reading outcomes is the child's socioeconomic status (SES). Previous research has demonstrated a significant and positive relationship between children's SES and their reading abilities, such that children from more advantaged backgrounds develop better reading skills. Interestingly, reading skills may also be correlated with rhythm perception. Children who struggle to acquire reading also appear to struggle in the ability to detect slight changes in rhythmic patterns. It is currently unknown why these two skills are related and whether SES impacts the development of rhythm perception. The goal of the current study was to examine the SES-rhythm relationship in children from a range of reading abilities. We recruited typically developing children (TD, N = 36) and children with dyslexia (DYS, N = 25) to complete a series of virtual reading assessments. Information about the child's history and home environment was collected from the parents. Children then completed a rhythm matching task in which they heard two patterns and reported whether they were the same or different. Contrary to our expectation, we found no relationship between SES and rhythm processing. This suggests that the different cognitive functions used in rhythm processing and reading are differentially influenced by SES, and that rhythmic processing may be more resilient to environmental influences. If our findings were replicated in a larger sample, they would support the use of rhythmic interventions to improve reading in children at risk for poor literacy based on their family's SES. |
