RT Journal Article
T1 Exploring the double deficit hypothesis in Spanish schoolchildren using latent profile analysis
A1 Flores, Amanda
A1 Sánchez, Auxiliadora
A1 Luque-Vilaseca, Juan Luis
A1 Giménez-de-la-Peña, Almudena
K1 Dislexia
AB BackgroundDyslexia is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by deficits in phonological awareness (PA). According to the Double Deficit Hypothesis (DDH), Rapid Automatic Naming (RAN) deficit is another potential independent cause. However, the evidence from studies with languages that vary in orthographic consistency is mixed.MethodsThe present study aims to investigate the heterogeneity of profiles based on PA and RAN in a sample of Spanish kindergarten children -a consistent orthography- before they start reading instruction (Time 1) to see whether these profiles could predict reading difficulties 2 years later (Grade 2, Time 2). At T1, 795 children were assessed on PA, RAN, letter knowledge (LK), and Verbal Short-term memory (VSTM). At T2, 373 children were reassessed on reading measures. To avoid arbitrary cut-points, profiles were established through Latent Profile Analysis (LPA).ResultsFour profiles emerged at both T1 and T2. No single PA or RAN profiles were found. Only the group of low performers corresponded to the Double Deficit profile. The T1 Low-performance group exhibited higher stability than the other groups: 92.5% of the low performers in kindergarten demonstrated poor reading ability in Grade 2, supporting the DDH prediction that children with deficits in both PA and RAN would be more severely impaired than the rest of the profiles. LK showed a relevant contribution in predicting impairment severity.ConclusionsPartial evidence supporting the DDH was obtained. The LPA proved to be appropriate for risk identification under a dimensional conceptualization.
PB Wiley Online Library
YR 2025
FD 2025-12
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10630/41289
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10630/41289
LA eng
NO Flores, A., Sánchez, A., Luque, J. L., & Giménez, A. (2025). Exploring the double deficit hypothesis in Spanish schoolchildren using latent profile analysis. Journal of Research in Reading, 000–000. https://doi.org./10.1111/1467-9817.70023
DS RIUMA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Málaga
RD 20 ene 2026