Everyday reading and writing practices of normal adults: Implications for aphasia assessment

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Abstract
The everyday reading and writing practices of 50 non-neurologically damaged adults were surveyed using a semi-structured interview format. The subjects rated the elicited activities in terms of the frequency with which they were performed and their relative importance. Data analysis made it possible to rank the 131 cited activities using an index of importance. Each of the top-ranking activities was then considered in terms of its representativeness for each individual subject. They were found to represent only a small percentage of each individual's total range of activities. Group differences were considered in terms of age, sex, marital status, education and social class. Few significant differences were found between the various groups which were compared. Incidental findings regarding some subjects' use of social networks were also taken into account. The results suggest that everyday reading and writing practices typical of a normal adult cannot be predicted. The implications for existing functional assessments of acquired reading and writing disorders are discussed in the light of developments within current literacy research. An ethnographic approach is suggested as a more appropriate framework for assessment.

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