Unique and Shared Mechanisms of Reading Skill and Anxiety Symptoms in Children

Abstract

The current study examines the distinct and common mechanisms underlying individual differences in reading skill and anxiety symptoms in children ages 7- to 12-years-old. A standardized oral word reading assessment is used to measure reading skill and a questionnaire is used to measure anxiety symptoms. Mechanisms are measured by a rhyming task manipulating lexical processing (i.e. low- versus high-frequency words), valence reactivity (i.e. negative versus neutral images) and working memory load (i.e. 2- versus 1-back). Overall, we observed a non-significant, negative relation between word reading skill and anxiety symptoms. Using hierarchical regressions, we observed 1) weak evidence supporting lexical processing as a mechanism of word reading skill, 2) no evidence supporting valence reactivity as a mechanism of anxiety symptoms, 3) weak evidence for working memory relating to both word reading skill and anxiety symptoms but word reading skill explains unique variance above and beyond anxiety symptoms. Although these findings were inconsistent with our hypotheses and prior literature, they could be due to the small sample size and the lack of less skilled readers in our present study. This study lays the groundwork for future brain imaging study and helps us gain a better understanding of mechanisms of reading and anxiety, which may ultimately inform intervention strategies for children struggling in these areas.