2-103 - Comorbidity in Specific Developmental Disorders: Examining Prevalence Rates, Cognitive Causes, and Implications for Treatment

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Despite intensive research on comorbidity in children with specific developmental disorders, how and why comorbidity arises and how it is best targeted in treatments remains unclear. This symposium seeks to gain a deeper understanding of this topic. Among the disorders discussed are specific language impairment (SLI), specific learning disorder such as reading disorder (RD), and developmental coordination disorder (DCD) as well as their relationship to neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD. The symposium combines results from (a) population-based and at-risk samples, (b) cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, and (c) person-centered versus variable-centered statistical methods.
The first paper provides a theoretical perspective on the comorbidity of learning disorders. Current conceptual and methodological issues in the study of comorbidity are identified and discussed. In the second paper, prevalence rates of learning disorders in children with symptoms of DCD, ADHD, or both are estimated and the possibility to capture interindividual variation in symptom severity using disability profiles is examined. In the third paper, the authors identified distinct cognitive profiles prior to school entry that were associated with the diagnosis of RD and/or SLI in Grade 2. The last paper evaluates the effectiveness of a training program for improving literacy and self-regulation in children with comorbid RD and ADHD.
Taken together the symposium contributes to debates on (a) the conceptualization of developmental disorders and their comorbidity, (b) the specificity of cognitive causes underlying isolated and comorbid forms of developmental disorders and (c) the necessity for multi-model treatments to address the needs of children with comorbid disorders.

Sub Unit

• Developmental Disabilities

Chairs

• Janin Brandenburg, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF)

• Sina Simone Huschka, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF)

Individual Presentations

• Theoretical Perspectives on Comorbidity of Learning Disorders - Presenting Author: Christin Schwenk, TU Dortmund, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences; Non-Presenting Author: Jörg-Tobias Kuhn, TU Dortmund, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences

• Specific Learning Difficulties in Children With Symptoms of ADHD, DCD, or Both - Presenting Author: Linda Visser, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF); Non-Presenting Author: Johanna Röschinger, Goethe University Frankfurt; Non-Presenting Author: Katja Barck, Goethe University Frankfurt; Non-Presenting Author: Gerhard Büttner, Goethe University Frankfurt; Non-Presenting Author: Marcus Hasselhorn, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF)

• Comorbidity Between Reading Disorder and Specific Language Impairment: In Search of Distinct Cognitive Profiles - Presenting Author: Janin Brandenburg, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF); Non-Presenting Author: Sina Simone Huschka, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF); Non-Presenting Author: Marcus Hasselhorn, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF)

• Effectiveness of a Training for Children With Combined Reading/Spelling and Attention Problems - Presenting Author: Julia Koenigs, University of Hildesheim; Non-Presenting Author: Kirsten Schuchardt, University of Hildesheim; Non-Presenting Author: Claudia Maehler, University of Hildesheim