Naming speed (NS) refers to how quickly and accurately participants name a set of familiar stimuli (e.g., letters). NS is an established predictor of reading ability, but controversy remains over why it is related to reading. We used three techniques (stimulus manipulations to emphasize phonological and/or visual aspects, decomposition of NS times…

Two subtypes of dyslexia (phonological, visual) have been under debate in various studies. However, the number of symptoms of dyslexia described in the literature exceeds the number of subtypes, and underlying relations remain unclear. We investigated underlying cognitive features of dyslexia with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. A…

Sequential regression was used to evaluate whether language-related working memory components uniquely predict reading and writing achievement beyond cognitive-linguistic translation for students in Grades 4 through 9 (N = 103) with specific learning disabilities (SLDs) in subword handwriting (dysgraphia, n = 25), word reading and spelling…

This investigation analyzed the relation between cognitive functioning and mathematical achievement in 114 students in fourth, fifth, and sixth grades. Differences in cognitive performance were studied concurrently in three selected achievement groups: mathematical learning disability group (MLD), low achieving group (LA), and typically achieving…

This study reports on several specific neurocognitive process predictors of reading outcomes for a sample of 278 children with reading disabilities. Three categories of response (i.e., poor, average, and good) were formed via growth curve models of six reading outcomes. Two nested discriminant function analyses were conducted to evaluate the…

In this study, we examined the influence of word-level phonological and lexical characteristics on early phoneme awareness. Typically developing children, ages 61 to 78 months, completed a phoneme-based, odd-one-out task that included consonant-vowel-consonant word sets (e.g., "chair-chain-ship") that varied orthogonally by a phonological…

Earlier results from the Jyvaskyla Longitudinal Study of Dyslexia showed that newborn event-related potentials (ERPs) of children with and without familial risk for dyslexia were associated with receptive language and verbal memory skills between 2.5 and 5 years of age. We further examined whether these ERPs (responses to synthetic consonant-vowel…

The objective of this study was to investigate the contribution of rapid digit naming, phonological memory, letter sound naming, and orthographic knowledge to the prediction of responsiveness to a school-based, individual intervention of word reading fluency problems of 122 Dutch second and third graders whose reading scores were below the 10th…

The aim of the study was to examine how goal-setting skills of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be predicted with elements of working memory. The study involved 30 children with an ADHD diagnosis and 30 healthy volunteers. The IQ of the participants was assessed, and ADHD symptoms were evaluated by parents. Each of…

The double-deficit hypothesis of developmental dyslexia proposes that deficits in phonological processing and naming speed represent independent sources of dysfunction in dyslexia. The present article is a review of the evidence for the double-deficit hypothesis, including a discussion of recent findings related to the hypothesis. Studies in this…

This study investigated the relative importance of semantic, grammatical, phonological, and rapid naming abilities in predicting word identification skills in 200 children (grades 1-6) using correlation, factor analysis, multiple regression, and predictive outcome analysis techniques. Composite measures of these abilities correlated significantly…

Ninety-three children (ages 10-12) were compared on phonological and visuospatial abilities. Children with a reading disability performed worse than nondisabled children on many visual and eye movement tasks. Sixty-eight percent of the variance in reading ability could be predicted by combining visual and phonological scores in a multiple…

Experimental phonological synthesis (sound blending) and analysis (rhyme detection) tasks were administered to children (n=76) preceding kindergarten entry. Measures of beginning reading were administered after kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. The sound blending task was significantly related to most interim and outcome measures. The…

Ninety-one Finnish preschoolers were assessed prior to receiving formal reading instruction. Verbal and nonverbal measures were used as predictors for the time of instruction required to accurately decode pseudowords. Phonological awareness differentiated precocious decoders from early decoders and ordinary decoders. Late decoders differed from…

Assessment of 486 first-quarter first graders identified 99 children as being at risk for reading difficulties, half of whom then received a phonological processing intervention. Results support the early identification of children at risk for reading difficulties and the effectiveness of the phonological processing intervention. (DB)