Identifying neurocognitive correlates of reading impacted by adversity exposure

PROJECT ABSTRACT/SUMMARY
Reading is a developmental process and a core component of education that depends on the acquisition,
integrity, and processing efficiency of fundamental text-based, linguistic, and neurocognitive processes refined
over time. The recent declines in reading proficiency among fourth and eighth grade students nationwide
underscore the pressing concern related to the developmental challenges posed by adverse childhood
experiences (ACEs) as ACEs are well-recognized ecological determinants of many negative educational and
health outcomes. ACEs are prevalent in over 50% of the United States population and are known to disrupt
crucial neurocognitive processes essential for reading development; however, whether the effect of ACE-
related changes to neurocognitive processes can impact reading outcomes has not been formally studied.
Complicating our collective understanding of these connections is evidence of outcome variability observed
across different reading domains depending on how researchers choose to model ACEs. To bridge these
gaps, data from the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) dataset will be used to
address three research aims: 1) examine the path relationships between four neurocognitive processes
(working memory, inhibition, cognitive flexibility, metacognition) and three benchmarks of reading proficiency
(receptive vocabulary, word identification, and standardized reading assessments) as they pertain to high- and
low-cumulative risk groups, 2) examine variability among pathway relationships between adversity and reading
through neurocognitive processes using different modeling approaches of adversity (i.e., cumulative risk,
threat/deprivation dimensions, latent classes), and 3) develop an integrated reading framework that considers
the developmental sequelae of adversity for future research. Longitudinal, multi-group structural equation
modeling will be used to examine the group-specific relationships between neurocognitive processes, including
a latent factor of metacognition, in middle childhood and reading outcomes measured during early
adolescence. Variability among pathway relationships between groups for each ACE modeling approach, in
addition to comparisons across each approach using global fit indices, will be evaluated to assess how
operationalization of ACEs can differentially influence longitudinal models of reading. This study’s impact lies in
its comprehensive examination of ACEs effects on neurocognitive processes and its subsequent impact on
reading outcomes to develop a conceptual reading framework to inform future work and translational practices.

Grant Number: 5R36OD037667-02
NIH Institute/Center: NIH
Principal Investigator: Charles Alvarado