Dr. Catts’ research interests include the early identification and prevention of language-based reading disabilities. He is currently involved in two longitudinal investigations related to early identification. In one project, he and his co-investigators are developing and evaluating a multivariate longitudinal assessment designed to screen for dyslexia and other language and literacy difficulties. This project is funded through a subcontract from Harvard U/MIT. In another project, he is working with colleagues in the Psychology Department to identify and follow approximately 250 toddlers with a family history of dyslexia and/or language impairment. This project, funded by NIH as part of the Florida Learning Disabilities Research Center, uses child, familial, and environmental data to model the co-development of language and pre-literacy skills and their relationship to the emergence of early reading achievement. In addition to these projects, he continues to work with colleagues and students on projects related reading comprehension development and disorders.
Education
- Ph.D., 1979, University of Florida, Speech
- M.A., 1977, University of Florida, Speech
- B.A., 1975, University of Florida, Psychology
Clinical Certification
Certificate of Clinical Competence – Speech-Language Pathology American Speech-Language-Hearing Association 1991-
Research Interests
Language/Literacy and Reading Disorders: Early Identification and Prevention of Language-Based Reading Disabilities
Publications & Research
Selected Recent Publications
- Catts, H.W. (in press). The simple view of reading: Advancements and false impressions. Remedial and Special Education.
- Catts, H.W., McIlraith, A., Bridges, M., & Nielsen, D. (2017). Viewing a phonological deficit within a multifactorial model of dyslexia. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 30, 613-629.
- Catts, H.W. (2017). Early identification of reading disabilities. In K. Cain, D.L. Compton, & R. Parrila (Eds.). Theories of reading development. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
- Catts, H.W. & Kamhi, A.G. (2017). Prologue: Reading Comprehension is not a single ability. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in the Schools, 1-4.
- Language and Reading Research Consortium (Catts member) & Logan, J. (2017). Pressure points in reading comprehension: A quantile multiple regression analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 109, 451-464.
- Catts, H.W., Nielsen, D., Bridges, M., & Liu, Y. (2016). Early identification of reading comprehension difficulties. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 49, 451-465.
- Catts, H.W., Nielsen, D., Bridges, M., Bontempo, D., & Liu, Y. (2015). Early identification of reading disabilities within an RTI framework. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 48,281-297.
- Language and Reading Research Consortium. (2015). Learning to read: Should we keep things simple? Reading Research Quarterly, 50, 151-169.