Kennedy Krieger Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21215, USA.
J Learn Disabil. 2010 Sep-Oct;43(5):441-54. doi: 10.1177/0022219409355476. Epub 2010 Apr 7.
Emerging research supports the contribution of executive function (EF) to reading comprehension; however, a unique pattern has not been established for children who demonstrate comprehension difficulties despite average word recognition ability (specific reading comprehension deficit; S-RCD). To identify particular EF components on which children with S-RCD struggle, a range of EF skills was compared among 86 children, ages 10 to 14, grouped by word reading and comprehension abilities: 24 average readers, 44 with word recognition deficits (WRD), and 18 S-RCD. An exploratory principal components analysis of EF tests identified three latent factors, used in subsequent group comparisons: Planning/ Spatial Working Memory, Verbal Working Memory, and Response Inhibition. The WRD group exhibited deficits (relative to controls) on Verbal Working Memory and Inhibition factors; S-RCD children performed more poorly than controls on the Planning factor. Further analyses suggested the WRD group's poor performance on EF factors was a by-product of core deficits linked to WRD (after controlling for phonological processing, this group no longer showed EF deficits). In contrast, the S-RCD group's poor performance on the planning component remained significant after controlling for phonological processing. Findings suggest reading comprehension difficulties are linked to executive dysfunction; in particular, poor strategic planning/organizing may lead to reading comprehension problems.
新兴研究支持执行功能（EF）对阅读理解的贡献；然而，对于表现出理解困难但平均单词识别能力正常的儿童（特定阅读理解缺陷；S-RCD），尚未建立独特的模式。为了确定 S-RCD 儿童在哪些特定的 EF 成分上存在困难，对 86 名 10 至 14 岁的儿童进行了一系列 EF 技能比较，这些儿童按单词阅读和理解能力分组：24 名平均阅读者、44 名有单词识别缺陷（WRD）和 18 名 S-RCD。对 EF 测试的探索性主成分分析确定了三个潜在因素，用于随后的组间比较：计划/空间工作记忆、言语工作记忆和反应抑制。WRD 组在言语工作记忆和抑制因素上表现出缺陷（相对于对照组）；S-RCD 儿童在计划因素上的表现比对照组差。进一步的分析表明，WRD 组在 EF 因素上的表现不佳是与 WRD 相关的核心缺陷的副产品（在控制了语音处理之后，该组不再表现出 EF 缺陷）。相比之下，在控制了语音处理之后，S-RCD 组在计划成分上的表现不佳仍然显著。研究结果表明，阅读理解困难与执行功能障碍有关；特别是，糟糕的策略规划/组织可能导致阅读理解问题。
