Reading and Writing Profiles in Twice-Exceptional Adolescents with Intellectual Giftedness and Dyslexia

This study provides empirical evidence on the reading and writing profile of adolescents with twice-exceptionality (2e), specifically those presenting both intellectual giftedness and dyslexia (G-D). Using a quantitative approach, the performance of the G-D group was compared with that of gifted students without dyslexia (G) and students with dyslexia without intellectual giftedness (D) in a sample of Spanish secondary school students. The results indicate that G-D adolescents exhibit a heterogeneous performance pattern across literacy-related measures, characterized by relative weaknesses in lexical and syntactic processes alongside comparatively stronger performance in semantic skills. Although they do not systematically outperform or fall behind the other groups, in specific subtests, G-D students show significantly higher scores than the D group and lower scores than the G group in global reading measures, particularly in the General Reading Index and comprehension tasks. These findings highlight the heterogeneous nature of the G-D profile and suggest that cognitive strengths associated with intellectual giftedness may partially compensate for difficulties related to dyslexia. Understanding this dual profile is essential for improving identification processes and for designing more precise and responsive interventions.