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Predicting individual differences in reading comprehension: a twin study

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Abstract

We examined the Simple View of reading from a behavioral genetic perspective. Two aspects of word decoding (phonological decoding and word recognition), two aspects of oral language skill (listening comprehension and vocabulary), and reading comprehension were assessed in a twin sample at age 9. Using latent factor models, we found that overlap among phonological decoding, word recognition, listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension was primarily due to genetic influences. Shared environmental influences accounted for associations among word recognition, listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. Independent of phonological decoding and word recognition, there was a separate genetic link between listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension and a specific shared environmental link between vocabulary and reading comprehension. There were no residual genetic or environmental influences on reading comprehension. The findings provide evidence for a genetic basis to the “Simple View” of reading.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the ongoing contribution of the parents and children in the Western Research Reading Project (WRRP). WRRP is supported by NICHD grant HD38075 and NICHD/OSERS grant HD46167.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Mind Research Network, Albuquerque, NM, USA

    Nicole Harlaar

  2. Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA

    Laurie Cutting

  3. Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Laurie Cutting

  4. Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, CT, USA

    Laurie Cutting

  5. Department of Psychology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, USA

    Kirby Deater-Deckard

  6. Department of Speech and Hearing, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    Laura S. DeThorne

  7. School of Teaching and Learning, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Laura M. Justice

  8. Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA

    Chris Schatschneider

  9. Department of Psychology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Lee A. Thompson

  10. Department of Human Development and Family Science, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Stephen A. Petrill

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  1. Nicole Harlaar
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Correspondence to Nicole Harlaar.

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Harlaar, N., Cutting, L., Deater-Deckard, K. et al. Predicting individual differences in reading comprehension: a twin study. Ann. of Dyslexia 60, 265–288 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11881-010-0044-7

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