Developmental dyslexia affects 4–7

Writing development in the early grades depends critically on transcription skills, yet little is known about how components of orthographic knowledge support children’s written composition in European Portuguese. This study examined whether lexical and sublexical orthographic knowledge assessed at the beginning of Grade 2 predict written composition at the end of the school year, and whether these effects are direct or mediated by word spelling. Eighty Grade 2 children completed measures of lexical orthographic knowledge (orthographic choice), sublexical orthographic knowledge (orthographic awareness), and word spelling at the beginning of the year, and a written composition task scored for lexical diversity at year’s end. Path analyses with maximum likelihood estimation and bias-corrected bootstrapping showed that orthographic knowledge explained 44% of the variance in word spelling and up to 18% in written composition. Lexical orthographic knowledge was a significant direct predictor of written composition (β = 0.38, p < 0.01), whereas sublexical orthographic knowledge showed a small but significant indirect effect through spelling (β = 0.08, p < 0.05) in the full mediation model. These findings highlight the central role of orthographic knowledge, particularly its lexical component, in supporting early writing in an orthography of intermediate depth.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) significantly affects victims' physical and mental health. Neurocognitive impairments, particularly in executive functioning, are crucial for daily functionality. However, no reviews or meta-analyses have focused on executive function (EF) alterations or the associated mechanisms contributing to a better understanding. This study aimed to synthesize and analyze differences in EF performance between women victims of IPV and non-victims, while also exploring potential mechanisms underlying these specific impairments. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Searches were performed in the PubMed, Web of Science Core Collection, PsycINFO, and Scopus databases. A random-effects model was employed to calculate pooled effect sizes. A total of 22 studies published between 2002 and 2023 met the inclusion criteria and were included, comprising 1,425 women victims of IPV and non-victims. The meta-analysis revealed moderate to large effects on cognitive flexibility, inhibition, and semantic verbal fluency domains, with IPV victims showing lower performance. Working memory's effect was non-significant. The qualitative synthesis demonstrated poorer phonological verbal fluency, nonverbal fluency, planning, reasoning, decision-making, and working memory. This synthesis also outlined differences observed among women experiencing physical, sexual, and/or psychological abuse, regardless of posttraumatic stress disorder or brain injury (BI). This systematic review and meta-analysis identified specific EF alterations in IPV victims, which may result from BI, psychopathology, or adverse childhood experiences, with their individual contributions requiring exploration in future studies. These findings can inform personalized interventions and decision-making within a legal context.

Phonological processing skills, such as phonological awareness, are known predictors of reading acquisition in alphabetic languages with varying degrees of orthographic complexity. However, the role of multi-letter-sound knowledge, an important foundation for early reading development, in supporting reading fluency development remains to be determined. This study examined whether two core foundational skills, phonemic awareness and grapheme sounding, have a predictive role in reading fluency development in an intermediate-depth orthography. The participants were 62 children learning to read in European Portuguese, and they were longitudinally assessed on phonemic awareness, complex grapheme sounding, and reading fluency (decoding, word, and text) from Grade 2 to Grade 3. The results showed that grapheme sounding predicted reading fluency development controlled for nonverbal intelligence and vocabulary, short-term verbal memory, and phonemic awareness. Grapheme sounding plays a prominent role in predicting reading fluency outcomes, whereas phonemic awareness (both accuracy and time per correct item) did not contribute to any of the three types of reading fluency. The fact that grapheme-sounding predicted reading fluency is likely due to complex grapheme-phoneme correspondences being required to achieve proficient reading. These findings provide insights into the cognitive processes underlying reading development in intermediate-depth orthographies and have implications for early literacy instruction.

This study aimed to verify the influence of social conditions - living in nursing homes or attending social centres - on memory decline, risk of dementia and depression and social involvement of elderly living on Terceira Island - Azores. Different assessment scales were administered: Weschler Memory Scale - 3rd Edition, Dementia Rating Scale - 2, Geriatric Depression Scale - 15, and Social Involvement Scale. A multivariate analysis of variance showed that elderly participating in social centres had more positive outcomes than institutionalised ones regarding memory decline, risk of dementia, depressive symptoms, and level of social involvement. A hierarchical regression analysis revealed that social condition was a factor for memory decline and risk of dementia, that the principal factor associated with depression was social involvement, and that the main factors related to social involvement were age and gender. These results suggest the importance of activities that promote social involvement in institutionalised elderly individuals.

Este estudo pretendeu verificar a influência das condições sociaisresidir em lar ou frequentar centros de convíviono declínio mnésico, risco de demência e depressão e no envolvimento social de adultos idosos da Ilha Terceira-Açores.Foram administradas a Escala de Memória de Weschler -3ª Edição, a Escala de Avaliação da Demência -2, a Escala de Depressão Geriátrica -15 e a Escala de Envolvimento Social.Uma análise de variância multivariada revelou que os adultos idosos frequentadores de centros de convívio tiveram melhores resultados do que os institucionalizados relativamente ao declínio mnésico, risco de demência, sintomas depressivos e envolvimento social.Regressões hierárquicas mostraram a condição social como fator importante do declínio mnésico e risco de demência; o envolvimento social como principal fator associado à depressão; e a idade e o sexo como os principais fatores relacionados com o envolvimento social.Estes resultados sugerem a importância de atividades que promovam o envolvimento social de adultos idosos institucionalizados.

OBJECTIVE:The current study aimed to validate the Performance Validity Test Coin in Hand-Extended Version (CIH-EV) in groups of healthy older adults and older adults with dementia.METHOD:Using an analog simulation paradigm, the healthy control group and the clinical group were instructed to perform to the best of their ability, whereas the feigning older adults were instructed to simulate a memory deficit to obtain allowance, financial aid, or early retirement.RESULTS:Results showed that the control and clinical groups performed more optimally than the feigning group, although the clinical group had superior response times. The CIH-EV was insensitive to sociodemographic variables and neurocognitive functioning in all groups, demonstrated good convergent validity with other performance validity measures, and showed a reduced rate of false positives.CONCLUSIONS:This study corroborates the CIH-EV's effectiveness in detecting the simulation of cognitive deficits in healthy older adults and older adults with dementia.

The rising demographic of older adults worldwide has led to an increase in dementia cases. In order to ensure the proper allocation of care and resources to this clinical group, it is necessary to correctly distinguish between simulated versus bona-fide cognitive deficits typical of dementia. Performance Validity Tests (PVTs) are specifically designed to assess a lack of effort and the possible simulation of cognitive impairment. Previous research demonstrates that PVTs may be sensitive to dementia, thus inaccurately classifying real memory impairment as simulation. Here, we analyzed the sensitivity of PVTs in discriminating between dementia and simulation using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. Further, we examined the potential need for adjusting cut-off scores for three stand-alone (Test of Memory Malingering, Rey-15 Item Memory Test, and Coin in Hand-Extended Version) and one embedded (Reliable Digit Span) PVT for Portuguese older adults with dementia. The results showed that (1) all measures, except for the Coin in Hand— Extended version (CIH-EV), were sensitive to one or more sociodemographic and/or cognitive variables, and (2) it was necessary to adjust cut-off points for all measures. Additionally, the Rey-15 Item Memory Test did not demonstrate sufficient discriminating capacity for dementia. These results present important implications for clinical practice and the daily life of patients, as the use of incorrect cut-off points could impede patients from getting the resources they need.

Abstract Orthographic knowledge is an important contributor to reading and spelling. However, empirical research is unclear about its long-lasting influence along with literacy development. We examined whether reading and spelling benefitted from an independent contribution of lexical and sublexical orthographic knowledge in European Portuguese, an intermediate depth orthography. This was investigated longitudinally from Grade 2 to 5 with two cohorts of Portuguese children, using common measures of orthographic knowledge, and word and pseudoword reading and spelling tasks. Regression analyses showed that lexical orthographic knowledge assessed at the beginning of Grade 2 predicted word reading at the beginning of Grade 3 (p < .05, variance explained = 6%), word spelling at the end of Grade 2 (p < .05, variance explained = 6%) and pseudoword spelling at the beginning of Grade 3 (p < .05, variance explained = 8%). They also revealed that lexical orthographic knowledge assessed at the beginning of Grade 4 predicted word spelling at the end of Grade 4 (p < .001, variance explained = 21%). Differently, sublexical orthographic knowledge evaluated at the beginning of Grade 2 and of Grade 4 only contributed to pseudoword spelling at the beginning of Grade 3 (p < .01, variance explained = 12%), and to pseudoword reading at the end of Grade 5 (p < .01, variance explained = 9%), respectively. Therefore, orthographic knowledge predicted spelling more often and earlier than reading. Furthermore, the results suggest that the influence of orthographic knowledge may vary during literacy development and, along with findings from other studies, that this influence at the lexical level may depend on orthographic consistency.

The number of computerized and reliable performance validity tests are scarce. This study aims to address this issue by validating a free and computerized performance validity test: the Coin in Hand-Extended Version (CIH-EV). The CIH-EV test was administered in four countries (Colombia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States) and performance was compared with other commonly used validated tests. Results showed that the CIH-EV has at least 95% specificity and 62% sensitivity, and performance was highly correlated with scores on the Test of Memory Malingering, Victoria Symptom Validity Test, and Digit Span of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. There were no significant differences in scores across countries, suggesting that the CIH-EV performs similarly in a variety of cultures. Our findings suggest that the CIH-EV has the potential to serve as a valid validity test either alone or as a supplement to other commonly used validity tests.

It is widely accepted that orthographic knowledge comprises two components: word-specific orthographic knowledge, also termed lexical orthographic knowledge, and general orthographic knowledge, or sublexical orthographic knowledge. Until now, the study of the relationship between these components throughout literacy development has been somehow neglected. In this study, we examined how they are related at an early stage of literacy development in European Portuguese, an orthography of intermediate depth. Children followed from Grade 2–3 performed two of the most common tasks of orthographic knowledge—the Orthographic Choice Task and the Orthographic Awareness Task. Crossed-lagged structural equation modeling showed significant mutual contributions between the two components of orthographic knowledge, providing thus preliminary evidence of bidirectional relations over time. Results are discussed in the context of theories of reading development taking into account the influence of orthography consistency.

The aim of this study was to develop an instrument to assess contextualized silent reading fluency in Portuguese university students. The test construction was inspired on a U.S. Test of Silent Contextual Reading Fluency. It includes two equivalent forms. Each of them contains a text printed in uppercase without punctuation and spaces between words. Students had to draw a line between as many individual words as possible in a time limited condition. The test was administered in small groups (5 to 10 participants) to a total of 50 Portuguese university students. An appropriate reliability for the two forms, and a good concurrent validity with a silent reading comprehension test was observed. Therefore, the test proved to be a quick, accurate and cost-efficient measure of silent reading ability now available for European Portuguese, useful for research and/or clinical purposes. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

EnglishThe aim of this study was to develop an instrument to assess contextualized silent reading fluency in Portuguese university students. The test construction was inspired on a U.S. Test of Silent Contextual Reading Fluency. It includes two equivalent forms. Each of them contains a text printed in uppercase without punctuation and spaces between words. Students had to draw a line between as many individual words as possible in a time limited condition. The test was administered in small groups (5 to 10 participants) to a total of 50 Portuguese university students. An appropriate reliability for the two forms, and a good concurrent validity with a silent reading comprehension test was observed. Therefore, the test proved to be a quick, accurate and cost-efficient measure of silent reading ability now available for European Portuguese, useful for research and/or clinical purposes. Limitations and future research directions are discussed. portuguesO objetivo do presente estudo foi desenvolver um instrumento para avaliacao da Fluencia na Leitura Silenciosa em Contexto (FLSC), com estudantes universitarios portugueses. A sua construcao foi inspirada num teste de FLSC dos EUA. Inclui duas formas equivalentes. Cada uma contem um texto escrito em letras maiusculas, sem pontuacao nem espacos entre palavras. Os estudantes tinham de desenhar um traco separador entre o maior numero de palavras possivel, numa condicao de tempo limitado. O teste foi administrado a um total de 50 estudantes universitarios, em pequenos grupos (entre 5 e 10 participantes). Foi obtida uma adequada fiabilidade entre as formas e uma boa validade concorrente, com um teste de compreensao em leitura silenciosa. O teste revelou-se uma medida rapida, precisa e de baixo custo para a avaliacao da FLSC, agora disponivel no Portugues Europeu, util para a investigacao e a clinica. Limitacoes e direcoes futuras sao discutidas.

The relevance of reading prosody on reading comprehension has been theoretically proposed and empirically recognised. The present study aimed to investigate longitudinal and concurrent relationships between reading prosody and reading comprehension processes, beyond decoding and word reading efficiency. Two cohorts of Portuguese children, ranging different grade levels (grades 2 to 3 and 4 to 5), were tested. Reading prosody was assessed through a rating scale, and text reading comprehension and context fluency effect were used to measure effortful and effortless reading comprehension processes, respectively. Results showed no bidirectional longitudinal effects between reading prosody and reading comprehension processes. In contrast, they revealed a concurrent contribution of reading prosody to the measure that mainly captures the effortless processes of reading comprehension from grades 2 to 5 but not for effortful ones. Results also highlighted the key role of decoding and word reading efficiency in the relationship between reading prosody and reading comprehension.

This study investigated direct and indirect effects between oral reading fluency, vocabulary and reading comprehension across reading development in European Portuguese. Participants were 329 children attending basic education, from grade 1 to grade 6. The results of path analyses showed that text reading fluency is much more dependent on the foundational skills of word recognition than reading comprehension, and the later, in turn, depends crucially on the specific constituent skill of text reading fluency. Text reading fluency has a significant influence on vocabulary from the beginning, but vocabulary contributed to reading comprehension only in more advanced grades. These results, obtained with an orthography of intermediate depth, are in line with the Simple View of Reading (SVR). However, they also highlight the importance of textual cues—besides the pivotal role of decoding—from the beginning of learning to read, which must be taken into account in the SVR.