DYSLEXIC AND CATEGORY-SPECIFIC APHASIC IMPAIRMENTS IN A SELF-ORGANIZING FEATURE MAP MODEL OF THE LEXICON

DISLEX is an artificial neural network model of the mental lexicon. It was built to test computationally whether the lexicon could consist o f separate feature maps for the different lexical modalities and the l exical semantics. connected with ordered pathways. Ln the model. the o rthographic, phonological, and semantic feature maps and the associati ons between them are formed in on unsupervised process, based on coocc urrence of the lexical symbol and its meaning. After the model is orga nized, various damage to the lexical system con be simulated, resultin g in dyslexic and category-specific aphasic impairments similar to tho se observed in human patients. (C) 1997 Academic Press.