Features Are Fundamental in Word Recognition

This chapter describes a model that suggests that the accurate perception of letters and features is intrinsic to good word recognition skills, and that visual sensitivity may be mediated by a preattentive visual search mechanism from the dorsal pathway. It explores the possibility that systematic exposure to reading and words leads to a functional specialization of a part of the visual system, and, conversely, that a lack of exposure to reading due to other causes, such as poor phonological decoding for example, may impact on the gradual specialization/development of the dorsal pathway.