Ben-Eli Hadas, Blique Hadas, Scheiman Mitchell, Eichler Rachel
Department of Optometry and Vision Science, Hadassah Academic College, Jerusalem, Israel.
Department of Ophthalmology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Centre, Jerusalem, Israel.
Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2025 Jan;45(1):43-49. doi: 10.1111/opo.13409. Epub 2024 Oct 27.
The developmental eye movement (DEM) test is designed to assess saccadic eye movements and visual-verbal automaticity in children. This study aimed to assess whether there is a need for independent DEM Hebrew norms and to compare DEM results for Hebrew-speaking children with eight other language norms.
The DEM test was administered to 224 Hebrew-speaking children aged 6-13 years who met the inclusion criteria and read the numbers in Hebrew. Test C of the DEM was performed twice, once from right (R) to left (L) and once from L to R, in random order. Age group and language comparisons, including vertical and horizontal reading speeds, errors and horizontal/vertical (H/V) ratios in both directions were analysed.
The participants were almost evenly distributed between the sexes (46.8% female). Statistically significant differences were found between age groups (6-9 and 10-13 years) for vertical and horizontal reading speeds and H/V ratios in both directions (p < 0.001). Older children, as compared to younger children, exhibited faster vertical and horizontal times, with fewer errors, as well as lower ratios (p < 0.001). No significant difference was noted between reading directions for horizontal time and H/V ratio within both age groups (6-9 year olds: p = 0.27 and p = 0.06; 10-13 year olds: p = 0.89 and p = 0.49, respectively). Comparison of DEM norms across languages showed significant differences, with post-hoc analysis revealing specific language-related variations. DEM results for Hebrew-speaking children had similar outcomes to both original English and French values.
This study compared DEM results of Hebrew-speaking children and scores across nine languages. DEM test values for Hebrew-speaking children aligned with norms from other languages, particularly the French and original English norms, with consistent ratio scores. It is recommended for practitioners who test Hebrew-speaking children to continue using the original English norms and to enable the children to read using their preferred reading direction.
发育性眼动（DEM）测试旨在评估儿童的扫视眼动和视觉-语言自动化能力。本研究旨在评估是否需要独立的希伯来语DEM常模，并将说希伯来语儿童的DEM结果与其他八种语言的常模进行比较。
对224名年龄在6至13岁、符合纳入标准且能用希伯来语读数字的说希伯来语儿童进行DEM测试。DEM测试的C部分进行两次，一次从右（R）到左（L），一次从左到右，顺序随机。分析年龄组和语言的比较情况，包括两个方向上的垂直和水平阅读速度、错误以及水平/垂直（H/V）比率。
参与者在性别上分布几乎均匀（女性占46.8%）。在年龄组（6至9岁和10至13岁）之间，两个方向上的垂直和水平阅读速度以及H/V比率存在统计学上的显著差异（p < 0.001）。与年幼儿童相比，年长儿童的垂直和水平时间更快，错误更少，比率也更低（p < 0.001）。在两个年龄组内（6至9岁儿童：p = 0.27和p = 0.06；10至13岁儿童：p = 0.89和p = 0.49），水平时间和H/V比率在阅读方向上没有显著差异。跨语言的DEM常模比较显示出显著差异，事后分析揭示了与特定语言相关的变化。说希伯来语儿童的DEM结果与原始英语和法语值有相似的结果。
本研究比较了说希伯来语儿童的DEM结果和九种语言的得分。说希伯来语儿童的DEM测试值与其他语言的常模一致，特别是法语和原始英语常模，比率得分一致。建议测试说希伯来语儿童的从业者继续使用原始英语常模，并让儿童按照他们喜欢的阅读方向进行阅读。
