title: Dyslexia and Substance Use in a University Undergraduate Population.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A number of cognitive deficits are associated with dyslexia. However, only a limited amount of research has been performed exploring a putative link between dyslexia and substance use. As substance use is thought to involve a cognitive component, it is possible that the pattern of substance use would be different for dyslexic participants, when compared to nondyslexic controls. During the current study, a guiding hypothesis was that people with dyslexia would demonstrate less substance use than nondyslexic controls. Theories of memory activation, automaticity, and attentional bias in substance use suggest that cognitive components of substance use are important in the development and maintenance of continued substance use and it is thought that, at least some of these components, would be impaired in a dyslexic population.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  If the cognitive deficits displayed by dyslexics somehow impair the development of cognitive components of substance use, substance use for dyslexic participants may be less pronounced. This paper therefore examines this hypothesis by comparing substance use within dyslexic and nondyslexic participants, from an undergraduate population.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was an exploratory questionnaire-based study. Dyslexic participants (n = 35) were compared to control participants (n = 62) on a series of questions designed to measure their substance use history.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results provided preliminary evidence of a difference between dyslexic and nondyslexic substance use. Dyslexics reported a substance use history that was significantly lower than nondyslexic controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results are interpreted in terms of cognitive deficits within dyslexia and with reference to the cognitive model of substance use.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychology , Lancaster University , Lancaster , United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Thomas D W
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Wilcockson
authors.affiliation: b Department of Psychology , City University London , London , United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Emmanuel M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Pothos
authors.affiliation: c Department of Psychology , Sheffield University , Sheffield , United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Angela J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Fawcett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003072:Cognition Disorders; D004410:Dyslexia / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities
keywords: Dyslexia; attentional bias; automaticity; memory activation; substance use