More Than Words: Anxiety, Self-Esteem, and Behavioral Problems in Children and Adolescents With Dyslexia

Abstract

This study focused on psycho-affective and behavioral problems in children and adolescents with dyslexia. It aims to define clinical psycho-affective and behavioral profiles of dyslexia beyond those found in existing descriptions of the cognitive, neural, and behavioral correlates. The study focused specifically on the understudied population of native Italian-speaking students. Characteristics of anxiety and self-esteem, as psycho-affective factors, and a variety of associated behavioral problems were studied in a sample of children and adolescents with dyslexia ( n = 22) and compared to those of a group without learning disabilities ( n = 25). The findings suggest the group of participants diagnosed with dyslexia exhibited psycho-affective symptoms, especially anxiety and low self-esteem in social, and academic situations more frequently than the control group. These problems were related to reading measures. More research is needed to determine how they are related and their interaction. Overall, these findings are useful in clarifying the profile of psycho-affective symptoms in the development of academic difficulties in children and adolescents with dyslexia. In some cases, school personnel focus their interventions only on the academic difficulties and not the psycho-affective or behavioral problems. These findings could have implications regarding intervention for this population.

A Scoping Review on Movement, Neurobiology and Functional Deficits in Dyslexia: Suggestions for a Three-Fold Integrated Perspective

“…To better understand Quadrato Motor Training and its effect on dyslexia, and to foster a more global perception of dyslexia as a condition affecting diverse aspects of the human experience [ 88 , 304 ], it is important to discuss the QMT within the framework of the Sphere Model of Consciousness [ 305 , 306 , 307 , 308 , 309 ]. The SMC is configured into three main axes—time, emotion, and self-determination—that represent the features of human experience.…”

“…Taken together, this evidence propounds that, considering the SMC, the physical QMT movements could be tightly linked to “conceptual movements” among the types of Self and toward higher states of consciousness. Future studies should investigate this proposed relationship and explore its explanatory potential in a wider context, especially with regard to disorders and impairments associated with deficits in these types of “movements”; it may also be useful to explore movement in additional dimensions of the human experience, such as emotion [ 88 , 304 ], and intentionality [ 230 , 306 , 307 , 308 ].…”

“…Emotional malfunctions may be at the roots of affective problems, such as frustration, low self-esteem, and even anxiety and behavioral problems, which can become serious primary clinical problems in combination with well-known reading difficulties [ 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 ]. For this reason, it is very important trying to combine the existing models focusing on cognitive and bodily processes involved in dyslexia with these emotional aspects, which are crucial for the well-being of people affected by this disorder.…”

“…Thus, in creating, evaluating, and administering treatments, factors beyond language intervention should be considered to achieve optimal outcomes. For example, “cool” executive functions, such as attention and working memory, should be assessed and treated [ 183 ], together with “hot” executive functions and emotional aspects, such as low self-esteem, anxiety and behavioural regulation, to fully encompass the well-being of people with dyslexia [ 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 ]. A recent study [ 184 ] implemented a remedial technique for dyslexia the consisted of asking children to repeatedly read texts aloud while listening to a song (reading with vocal musical masking, or RVM; [ 185 ]).…”

Are General Anxiety, Reading Anxiety, and Reading Self-Concept Linked to Reading Skills Among Chinese Adolescents With and Without Dyslexia?

“…Based on the deficit model (Carey et al, 2016), self-enhancement hypothesis (Calsyn & Kenny, 1977), and research reviewed above (e.g., Katzir et al, 2018; Macdonald et al, 2021; Vaknin-Nusbaum et al, 2018; Zuppardo et al, 2023), we hypothesized that Chinese adolescents with dyslexia would show higher general anxiety and reading anxiety, lower reading self-concept, poorer verbal working memory, and slower rapid digit naming than typical readers. Guided by attentional control theory (Derakshan & Eysenck, 2009; Eysenck et al, 2007) and previous studies (Macdonald et al, 2021; Wang, 2021), we hypothesized that, relative to the role of general anxiety, reading anxiety would be associated with reading skills in adolescents with and without dyslexia, particularly reading comprehension, beyond the cognitive factors of rapid naming and verbal working memory.…”