A method of error analysis, designed to examine phonological and nonphonological reading and spelling processes, was developed from preliminary studies and theoretical background, including a linguistic model and the relationships between articulatory features of phonemes. The usefulness of this method as an assessment tool for phonological ability was tested on a group of normal subjects. The results from the error analysis helped clarify similarities and differences in phonological performance among the subjects and helped delineate differences between phonological performance in spelling (oral and written) and reading within the group of subjects. These results support the usefulness of this method of error analysis in assessing phonological ability. Also, these results support the position that phonological approximation of responses is an important diagnostic feature and merely cataloging errors as phonologically accurate or inaccurate is inadequate for assessing phonological ability.