Audiovisual multisensory integration in individuals with reading and language impairments: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Differences in sensory function have been documented for a number of neurodevelopmental conditions, including reading and language impairments. Prior studies have measured audiovisual multisensory integration (i.e., the ability to combine inputs from the auditory and visual modalities) in these populations. The present study sought to systematically review and quantitatively synthesize the extant literature on audiovisual multisensory integration in individuals with reading and language impairments. A comprehensive search strategy yielded 56 reports, of which 38 were used to extract 109 group difference and 68 correlational effect sizes. There was an overall difference between individuals with reading and language impairments and comparisons on audiovisual integration. There was a nonsignificant trend towards moderation according to sample type (i.e., reading versus language) and publication/small study bias for this model. Overall, there was a small but non-significant correlation between metrics of audiovisual integration and reading or language ability; this model was not moderated by sample or study characteristics, nor was there evidence of publication/small study bias. Limitations and future directions for primary and meta-analytic research are discussed.

A Randomized Controlled Trial for Audiovisual Multisensory Perception in Autistic Youth.

Differences in audiovisual integration are commonly observed in autism. Temporal binding windows (TBWs) of audiovisual speech can be trained (i.e., narrowed) in non-autistic adults; this study evaluated a computer-based perceptual training in autistic youth and assessed whether treatment outcomes varied according to individual characteristics. Thirty autistic youth aged 8-21 were randomly assigned to a brief perceptual training (n = 15) or a control condition (n = 15). At post-test, the perceptual training group did not differ, on average, on TBWs for trained and untrained stimuli and perception of the McGurk illusion compared to the control group. The training benefited youth with higher language and nonverbal IQ scores; the training caused widened TBWs in youth with co-occurring cognitive and language impairments.