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Updated: Jun 16, 2026
09:05
Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children – Working Memory (CABC-WM)
Published on: June 12, 2017
Working memory deficit in dyslexia: behavioral and FMRI evidence
Harald Beneventi1, Finn Egil Tønnessen, Lars Ersland
1Department of Biological and Medical Psychology, Division of Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bergen, Norway. harald.beneventi@psybp.uib.no
The International Journal of Neuroscience
|February 5, 2010
Summary
Dyslexic children exhibit working memory deficits, impacting reading abilities. Brain imaging reveals reduced activation in key areas, suggesting impaired cognitive function in dyslexia.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Dyslexia is a reading disorder primarily linked to phonological deficits.
- Previous research suggests potential cognitive impairments beyond phonological processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate working memory function in children with dyslexia using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
- To compare working memory performance and brain activation patterns between dyslexic and control groups.
Main Methods:
- Participants completed a working memory n-back task at three difficulty levels.
- Behavioral performance was recorded.
- Brain activity was measured using fMRI, focusing on prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, and cerebellum activation.
Main Results:
- Dyslexic children performed significantly worse on the working memory task compared to controls.
- fMRI data indicated reduced activation in the prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, and cerebellum in dyslexic children.
- These neural differences correlated with behavioral deficits.
Conclusions:
- Dyslexia is associated with a working memory deficit.
- Impaired working memory may contribute to the reading difficulties observed in dyslexia.
- Findings suggest a broader cognitive basis for dyslexia involving executive functions.
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