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Processing speed deficits in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and reading disability
Michelle A Shanahan1, Bruce F Pennington, Benjamin E Yerys
1Department of Psychology, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA. mshanah2@du.edu
Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology
|July 20, 2006
Summary
Processing speed deficits are a shared risk factor in reading disability (RD) and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). These cognitive deficits may help explain why RD and ADHD often occur together.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Reading disability (RD) and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are frequently comorbid conditions.
- Previous research suggests processing speed (PS) deficits in both ADHD and RD individually.
- The shared cognitive underpinnings of this comorbidity remain incompletely understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if processing speed (PS) deficits represent a shared cognitive risk factor in reading disability (RD) and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
- To compare the profiles of PS deficits across individuals with RD, ADHD, comorbid RD+ADHD, and controls.
- To determine if PS deficits contribute to the high comorbidity rate between RD and ADHD.
Main Methods:
- Administered a comprehensive battery of speeded tasks to four groups: RD, ADHD, comorbid RD+ADHD, and controls.
- Utilized underadditivity analyses to assess the shared nature of PS deficits in the comorbid group.
- Employed partial correlation analyses to examine the relationship between PS deficits and the comorbidity of RD and ADHD.
Main Results:
- Both clinical groups (RD and ADHD) exhibited significant general processing speed (PS) deficits compared to the control group.
- Individuals with reading disability (RD) showed more pronounced PS deficits than those with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
- Underadditivity in the comorbid group and a reduction in the RD-ADHD correlation after controlling for PS provided evidence for shared deficits.
Conclusions:
- Processing speed (PS) deficits are present in both reading disability (RD) and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
- Processing speed (PS) appears to be a shared cognitive risk factor that may underlie the frequent co-occurrence of RD and ADHD.
- Understanding these shared cognitive mechanisms is crucial for developing integrated interventions for comorbid RD and ADHD.
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