Hugh W. Catts

Professor and Chair

Phone: (785) 864-0639
Fax: (785) 864-3974
catts@ku.edu

BA, 1975, University of Florida
MA, 1977, University of Florida
Ph.D., 1979, University of Florida

Principal Investigator, Language and Reading Disorders Laboratory

Research

Professor Catts' research focuses on the relationship between developmental spoken and written language impairments. Most recently, he and his colleagues are conducting a large-scale longitudinal study. In this project, which is funded by NIDCD, approximately 600 children are being followed from kindergarten through high school. This study allows for the examination of the reading-speaking relationship from several perspectives. In one perspective, a large group of children with LI were identified in kindergarten and their reading achievement is being examined during the school years. This work not only has documented the high incidence of reading disabilities in these children, but has identified factors related to reading achievement in this population. In other studies involving the same sample of children, Dr. Catts and his colleagues have identified children with reading disabilities at different grades and examined their oral language development. This research has been instrumental in showing that the language problems associated with reading disabilities extend beyond phonological processing to higher levels of language processing. These data have also been useful in the development of procedures for the early identification of children at risk for reading disabilities. Finally, this research has suggested a classification system for poor readers that captures individual differences on several language-based dimensions of reading.

Publications

Catts, H., Adlof, S., Hogan, T., & Ellis-Weismer, S. (2005). Are specific language impairment and dyslexia distinct disorders? Journal of Speech-Language-Hearing Research, 48, 1378-1396.

Catts, H. & Kahmi, A. (2005) (Eds.) Language and reading disabilities. Needham Hts., MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Catts, H., & Kahmi, A. (2005) (Eds.) The connections between language and reading disabilities. Mahway, NJ: Erlbaum.

Catts, H., Hogan, T., & Fey, M. (2003). Subgrouping poor readers on the basis of reading-related abilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 36, 151-164.

Catts, H. & Hogan, T. (2003). Language basis of reading disabilities and implications for early identification and remediation. Reading Psychology, 24, 223-246.