# Attention in Reading and Reading Difficulties

> **NIH NIH P50** · UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON · 2022 · $105,935

## Abstract

Multiple cognitive processes are related to academic outcomes in learning disabilities (LDs), but how
processes influence academic skill, and whether academic skill learning changes cognitive processes is
unclear1-7. Studies relating academic outcomes and cognitive processes are often not informed by theories that
specify the nature of their relations. The focus of Project 2 is on attention because: (1) cognitive attention is a
“hub” ability that fosters development of higher cognitive functions, making it an important target to study in
children with learning difficulties8; (2) behavioral attention difficulties often co-occur with academic difficulties.
Their presence increases the severity of the learning problem9; (3) attention may have both “state-like” and
“trait-like” properties, but little research has tested these ideas in individuals with learning difficulties; (4)
(visual) attention has been implicated in theories of word reading10-12, and internal control over attention has
been implicated in reading comprehension; however, the nature and size of these relations in children with
reading difficulties is unclear; (5) research on attention has a rich theoretical and empirical base that are rarely
employed for studying the relation of attention and academic performance; (6) attention is a potential candidate
skill that may be advantaged in individuals who are proficient at multiple languages, thereby making Project 2
(Attention) particularly relevant. Consistent with the RFA, we focus on a group with persistent reading
difficulties that is historically underserved – middle-school aged current or former English learners with a range
of language proficiencies, and where Spanish is a home language. Project 2 builds on findings from the
previous 5 years that focused on executive function and its relation with academic skill. Project 2 intersects
with each of other projects in this Center, with three aims that address the relation of attention, reading, and
reading difficulties. Aim 1 examines how attention interacts with academic skills over time by assessing both
longitudinally, for different types of attention, different components of reading and math, and for students with
and without reading difficulties (n = 424 to 1044). Aim 2 is focused on parsing the contribution of two aspects of
attention to reading: visual attention and internal control over attention conceptualized as “mind wandering”
(total n = 270). We focus on these aspects of attention because of theories that specifically relate them to word
reading and fluency and to reading comprehension, seeking to understand the conditions under which these
aspects of attention can be manipulated to impact reading and reading difficulties. Aim 3 uses the Aim 1
sample (n = 424) in a measurement study to address the structure of attentional constructs to one another, and
to closely related constructs (processing speed, working memory). Because the aspects of attention we study
are chosen fro...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10360554
- **Project number:** 5P50HD052117-15
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON
- **Principal Investigator:** PAUL T CIRINO
- **Activity code:** P50 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $105,935
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2006-06-01 → 2023-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10360554

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10360554, Attention in Reading and Reading Difficulties (5P50HD052117-15). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10360554. Licensed CC0.

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