Dyslexia: Gift or Disorder? Steve Jobs, Stephen Hawking, Other Great Minds Have It

Scientists have recently discovered that people with dyslexia, a learning disorder, have special skills that have enabled the human species to survive.

A Study Finds report said that dyslexia had affected some of the most significant figures in history, including Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Pablo Picasso, and Stephen Hawking.

Even entrepreneurs such as Steve Jobs and Richard Branson, who went on to build billion-dollar companies, have dealt with developmental dyslexia, as well.

According to the University of Cambridge researchers, these people are better at solving problems and adjusting to changes, so much so that they could hold the key to addressing climate change.

Discovering the Unknown

Those with a common learning disability specialize in discovering the unknown, possibly essential in the decades to come as the exploration of space takes off.

The research findings, published in the Frontiers in Psychology, have implications both at the societal and individual levels.

Dr. Helen Taylor, the study's lead author, said the deficit-centered view of dyslexia is not telling the entire story. She added that this study suggests a new framework to help them "better understand the cognitive strengths" of people with dyslexia.

Dyslexia in Prominent People

Estimates have suggested that dyslexia could impact up to one in every five individuals in the United States. It primarily causes problems with spelling, writing, and reading.

Prominent people with who the condition has afflicted include John Lennon, Walt Disney, Jamie Oliver, and Keira Knightley.

In addition, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, and George Washington left an indelible mark on the world as the United States Presidents "regardless of their spelling ability," the report also specified.

Dr. Taylor also explained they believe that the areas of difficulty people with dyslexia are experiencing result from a cognitive trade-off between exploring new information and exploring existing knowledge, "with the upside being an explorative bias" that could exemplify enhanced abilities observed in some realms such as discovery, invention, and creativity.

The Condition, a Gift or Disorder?

This study by the University of Cambridge is a pioneer in looking at dyslexia from an evolutionary perspective, offering new insights into its prevalence among gifted and talented people.

Taylor said schools, academic institutions, and workplaces are not designated "to make the most of explorative learning." However, she added, there is an urgency to begin nurturing the way of thinking to enable humanity to continue adapting and solving key challenges.

Essentially, dyslexia is defined by the World Federation of Neurology as a "disorder in children who" amidst conventional classroom experience, are unable to achieve the language skills of reading, spelling, and writing to proportionate with their intellectual capabilities.

How Can Dyslexia Solve Climate Change

Dealing with climate change will necessitate the collective power of complementary cognition, held back by modern society's cultural practices.

Academics, educators, and policymakers consider those with dyslexia as suffering from a developmental disorder.

Nevertheless, its prevalence throughout society proposes these people have a beneficial form of cognition passed down from our ancestors over thousands of eras.

The outcomes align with evidence from various other fields. Furthermore, an explorative bias in such a massive proportion of the population specifies that the human species evolved during a high uncertainty and change generation.

Related information about the gift of having dyslexia is shown on TEDx Talk's YouTube video below:

Check out more news and information on Medicine & Health in Science Times.