title: Developmental dyscalculia and basic numerical capacities: a study of 8-9-year-old students.
abstract: Thirty-one 8- and 9-year-old children selected for dyscalculia, reading difficulties or both, were compared to controls on a range of basic number processing tasks. Children with dyscalculia only had impaired performance on the tasks despite high-average performance on tests of IQ, vocabulary and working memory tasks. Children with reading disability were mildly impaired only on tasks that involved articulation, while children with both disorders showed a pattern of numerical disability similar to that of the dyscalculic group, with no special features consequent on their reading or language deficits. We conclude that dyscalculia is the result of specific disabilities in basic numerical processing, rather than the consequence of deficits in other cognitive abilities.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, 17 Queen Square, London WC1N 3AR, UK.
authors.forename: Karin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Landerl
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bevan
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Butterworth
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002658:Developmental Disabilities; D006801:Humans; D008433:Mathematics; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011930:Reaction Time; D012720:Severity of Illness Index