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Functional Illiteracy and Developmental Dyslexia: Looking for Common Roots. a Systematic Review

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Functional Illiteracy and Developmental Dyslexia: Looking for Common Roots. a Systematic Review J Cult Cogn Sci https://doi.org/10.1007/s41809-021-00074-9 (0123456789().,-volV)( 0123456789().,-volV) REVIEW Functional illiteracy and developmental dyslexia: looking for common roots. A systematic review Re´ka Va´gvo¨lgyi . Kirstin Bergstro¨m . Aleksandar Bulajic´ . Maria Klatte . Taˆnia Fernandes . Michael Grosche . Falk Huettig . Jascha Ru¨sseler . Thomas Lachmann Received: 26 August 2020 / Revised: 3 December 2020 / Accepted: 22 December 2020 Ó The Author(s) 2021 Abstract A considerable amount of the population is some data suggesting commonalities between low in more economically developed countries are func- literacy and developmental dyslexia, it is still not tionally illiterate (i.e., low literate). Despite some clear, whether these reflect shared consequences (i.e., years of schooling and basic reading skills, these cognitive and behavioral profile) or shared causes. The individuals cannot properly read and write and, as a present systematic review aims at exploring the consequence have problems to understand even short similarities and differences identified in empirical texts. An often-discussed approach (Greenberg et al. studies investigating both functional illiterate and 1997) assumes weak phonological processing skills developmental dyslexic samples. Nine electronic coupled with untreated developmental dyslexia as databases were searched in order to identify all possible causes of functional illiteracy. Although there quantitative studies published in English or German. Although a broad search strategy and few limitations were applied, only 5 studies have been identified Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/ adequate from the resulting 9269 references. The s41809-021-00074-9. R. Va´gvo¨lgyi Á K. Bergstro¨m Á A. Bulajic´ Á T. Fernandes M. Klatte Á T. Lachmann (&) Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Cognitive and Developmental Psychology Unit, Centre Portugal for Cognitive Science, University of Kaiserslautern, e-mail: [email protected] Kaiserslautern, Germany e-mail: [email protected] M. Grosche Institute of Educational Research, University of R. Va´gvo¨lgyi Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] K. Bergstro¨m e-mail: [email protected] F. Huettig Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, A. Bulajic´ The Netherlands e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] M. Klatte e-mail: [email protected] F. Huettig Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University, A. Bulajic´ Nijmegen, The Netherlands Chair of Andragogy, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia 123 J Cult Cogn Sci results point to the lack of studies directly comparing 2019) of the German-speaking adults (18–64 years; functional illiterate with developmental dyslexic 6.2 million) are not able to read and write texts, even if samples. Moreover, a huge variance has been identi- they are brief. fied between the studies in how they approached the This phenomenon of limited reading and writing concept of functional illiteracy, particularly when it skills has been termed as functional illiteracy (Bar- came to critical categories such the applied definition, Kochva et al. 2019), which impedes people from terminology, criteria for inclusion in the sample, effortlessly accomplishing otherwise simple tasks research focus, and outcome measures. The available such as filling out a job application, reading a medicine data highlight the need for more direct comparisons in label, or participating successfully in vocational order to understand what extent functional illiteracy training programs. According to the UNESCO and dyslexia share common characteristics. (2006) and the World Literacy Foundation (Cree et al. 2012), those with functional illiteracy are more Keywords Illiteracy Á Low literate Á Adult basic likely to be left behind and receive less political, education Á Dyslexia Á Reading Á Comprehension cultural, social, and economic benefits. Therefore, functional illiteracy is a societal problem with major (economical) implications not only for those suffering from it but also for the societies to which they belong. Introduction In more economically developed countries, the costs resulting from functional illiteracy (e.g., welfare Reading and writing are fundamental for acquiring payments and burden on the health systems), amount other key competencies for lifelong learning (Council to about 2% of the Gross Domestic Product, i.e., 362 2018), which are necessary for participation in the billion dollars in the US and 68 billion in Germany society. Large-scale studies have shown that, the level (World Literacy Foundation 2015). As a first step, it is of literacy of many adolescents and adults are not critical to better understand the predictors of func- sufficient to participate fully in everyday life (OECD tional illiteracy, as well as the most effective measures 2013). For example, in the recent PIAAC Survey of for prevention and intervention. Adult Skills (OECD 2019), 19.8% of the adult Socioeconomic and sociodemographic factors as population (16–65 years) from 39 countries and well as individual factors (cognitive, emotional and economies could read and locate only single pieces motivational) have been identified in the literature of information in simple texts. In France, the Infor- (see, e.g., Va´gvo¨lgyi et al. 2016, for review) to mation and Daily Life Survey (IVQ: Information et affect—isolated or in combination—literacy acquisi- Vie Quotidienne, Jeantheau 2015) showed that in tion in childhood (e.g., Hemmerechts et al. 2016)as 2011, 11.0% of the adults (16–64 years; 4.3 million) well as literacy proficiency in adulthood (e.g., OECD performed poorly in at least one of the three domains 2019). For instance, adults with low literacy skills investigated: reading aloud, reading comprehension, were found to be more often older than 45 years, male, and writing. In Germany, the Level One Survey not or low educationally qualified, not native speakers, showed that 12.1% (LEO 2018, Grotlu¨schen et al. and more often unemployed (Grotlu¨schen et al. 2019). Furthermore, disadvantages in family background (e.g., low economic security, neglect and disinterest), J. Ru¨sseler Department of Psychology, University of Bamberg, school experience (e.g., social shame, punishment for Bamberg, Germany failure; Do¨bert and Hubertus 2000; Nickel 2007), and e-mail: [email protected] medical history (e.g., chronical disease, brain damage, uncorrected impaired vision and hearing; Ardila et al. J. Ru¨sseler Bamberg Graduate School of Affective and Cognitive 2010) were found to be associated with low literacy Sciences (BaGrACS), University of Bamberg, Bamberg, skills. Above all, due to socioeconomic and sociode- Germany mographic factors, low literacy tends to be passed from one generation to the next (Grotlu¨schen and T. Lachmann Facultad de Lenguas y Educacio´n, Universidad Nebrija, Riekmann 2011; Nickel 2007). Madrid, Spain 123 J Cult Cogn Sci Besides these factors, developmental dyslexia cannot engage in all those activities in which literacy could be also considered as a potential precursor of is required for effective functioning of his group and functional illiteracy (e.g., Greenberg et al. 1997). community and also for enabling him to continue to Developmental dyslexia is characterized by signifi- use reading, writing, and calculation for his own and cant and persistent difficulties in learning to read, the community’s development’’ (UNESCO 1979, expressed at behavioral level by individual reading p. 183). Since then, several conceptual and opera- accuracy, fluency, and comprehension that is mark- tionalized definitions appeared, however, the applied edly below what would be expected for chronological criteria to define and the assessment tools to identify age, general cognitive development, and appropriate the functional illiterate or low literate population vary education, resulting in significant impairment in the between countries (e.g., France vs. Germany) and individual’s academic functioning (6A03.0, World methodologies (e.g., large-scale vs. experimental Health Organization 2019). design). Research on adults with low literacy revealed For example, the IVQ study uses the term illiterate, higher prevalence rates of developmental dyslexia or individual in the situation of illiteracy (literal than in the general population. For example, in the translation of les personnes en situation d’illettrisme), USA, 48% of the English native speaking ABE for adults who attended school for at least 6 years but students (Adult Basic Education; literacy programs who did not achieve mastery in reading, writing, and for low-literate adults, offered by community colleges other basic skills (e.g., oral communication, logical and adult education centers) reported a learning reasoning, comprehension), which would allow them disability in childhood (MacArthur et al. 2010), while to be autonomous in daily life (Jeantheau 2015). The another study (Gottesman et al. 1996) diagnosed 33% LEO studies (Grotlu¨schen et al. 2019; Grotlu¨schen and of their literacy program participants with develop- Riekmann 2011), in contrast, do not take school mental dyslexia. In the LEO 2018 study (Grotlu¨schen attendance into account in the definition of functional et al. 2019, 2020), the prevalence rate of developmen- illiteracy. Instead, they use the term
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