Editorial: Understanding developmental dyslexia: linking perceptual and cognitive deficits to reading processes

The problem of causation has proven particularly elusive in the case of developmental dyslexia (DD). The field has been dominated by very general hypotheses, such as the idea that DD is caused by a phonological deficit and/or an impairment of the magnocellular pathway. Results are contrasting and causal unidirectional links have not been persuasively demonstrated. Some studies in the Research Topic (RT) re-examine these general hypotheses from the critical perspective of more selective predictions. Others focus on less general deficit hypotheses and stay closer to reading by investigating specific aspects of the reading process such as orthographic learning ability or the ability to deal with multiple-stimulus displays. Studies benefit from new research paradigms as well as new information from research areas such as neuroimaging or genetics. Below, we sketch the general questions tackled by these studies

Understanding the interplay between teacher self-efficacy, teacher–student interactions, and students’ self-regulated learning skills at different levels of classroom ecology.

Introduction: Studies pinpoint the importance of exploring factors in theclassroom environment that might foster students’ SRL-skills in various domains.This study explored specific teacher and classroom factors, including self-efficacyfor SRL-skills (TSE) and teacher–student interactions in relation to students’ selfregulated learning skills in various domains (metacognitive, motivational, andbehavioral). Additionally, the moderating role of teacher–student interactions inthe relationship between TSE and SRL-skills was examined.Methods: Third-to sixth grade students (N  =  1,278, 46.9% boys) from 63classrooms of Dutch elementary schools completed reports about theirmetacognitive, motivational, and behavioral SRL-skills. Teachers reported ontheir TSE for eight randomly selected students from their classes. In addition,the Classroom Assessment Scoring System was used to observe the quality ofteacher–student interactions.Results: Multilevel analyses generally revealed that individual students reportedbetter metacognitive, motivational, and behavioral SRL-skills when their teachersfelt efficacious in teaching SRL-skills. However, none of the associations atthe class level were significant. Moreover, when high-quality teacher–studentinteractions were observed, students reported lower levels of metacognitive,motivational, and behavioral SRL-skills. No moderating effect of teacher–student interactions on the relation between TSE and SRL-skills was found.Discussion: These findings show that specific measures of TSE at the appropriatelevel of analysis may help to better explain variation in TSE and students’ SRL-skills

The Relational Side of Teachers’ Self-efficacy:Assimilation and Contrast Effects of Classroom Relational Climate on Teachers’ Self-Efficacy

Although much is known about the sources of teachers' self-efficacy (TSE), less attention has been paid to the social-contextual specificity of TSE and the processes influencing the relevance of TSE information sources. This study investigated both dyad-level relationships and the classroom relational climate as predictors of TSE at the student and classroom level. Additionally, we explored two competing hypotheses—assimilation and contrast—articulating how teachers use information conveyed by classroom relationship experiences as a heuristic to interpret relationship experiences with individual students as a TSE source. Elementary school teachers (N = 86; 72.05% female) completed the Student–Teacher Relationship Scale and Student-Specific Teacher Self-Efficacy Scale for randomly selected children (N = 687, 50.1% girls, Grades 3–6) from their classes. Doubly latent multilevel structural equation modeling was used to test for associations of Closeness and Conflict with TSE at both the student (L1) and classroom level (L2). Contextual effects, corresponding to associations of classroom-level Closeness and Conflict with TSE above the same associations at the student level, were calculated to test assimilation and contrast hypotheses. At L1, results indicated positive associations between Closeness and TSE and negative associations between Conflict and TSE. At L2, only Conflict was negatively associated with TSE. Consistent with the contrast hypothesis, the contextual effect of Closeness, but not Conflict, was negative and significant. Hence, teachers' judgments of a relatively close classroom relational climate may lead them to perceive relational closeness with individual students in a more negative light, resulting in lower levels of TSE toward these students

Trust in international joint venture relationships

A great deal of attention has been paid to the performance of international joint ventures (IJVs) and trust has been recognised as a key factor influencing it. This paper examines the emergence of trust as a process and develops a process model of trust building in IJVs, which is used to analyse four case studies. The main conclusions are the following: Whereas competence-based trust starts from public information, promissory-based trust and goodwill-based trust are individually orientated and mainly develop through direct personal interaction. Such interaction may lead to bonds of friendship between delegates. Before these bonds evolve, trust is mainly based on the perceived self-interest of the partner in the joint venture. When the bonds of friendship dominate, the main source of trust shifts towards emotional commitments. Thus, in the early stages of an IJV, promissory-based trust predominates, and as the joint venture progresses, competence-based trust emerges. Goodwill-based trust is important throughout the process. A commitment to cooperate emerges from initial self-interest. The model is capable of further development and testing

Prevention of reading difficulties in children with and without familial risk:Short- and long-term effects of an early intervention

In a randomized-controlled trial we tested a computer-assisted intervention for the prevention of reading difficulties, delivered by nonprofessional tutors, running from kindergarten to halfway Grade 2. The full sample included 123 prereaders (M = 5; 6 years; 56 intervention; 67 controls) with low preliteracy skills. Parents were sent a questionnaire to assess family risk (FR) for reading difficulties. There was no intervention effect in the full sample, but, unexpectedly, the effect differed between subsamples that did and did not return the questionnaire. The intervention did not affect reading acquisition in the subsample (N = 49) without FR-data, mostly children from immigrant, non-Dutch speaking, low-socioeconomic status (SES) families, but had large effects in the subsample of Dutch-speaking, middle and high SES-parents with FR-data (N = 74). The latter subsample was followed until Grade 6, 4 years after the intervention, and included 36 intervention children and 38 controls. Long-lasting improvements were found in word-reading fluency, which transferred to reading fluency for pseudowords, English words: and texts, and to spelling. The intervention substantially reduced the need for remedial teaching and grade retention. On all measures, children with FR performed worse than children without FR. The intervention had similar effects on the progress of both groups, but the FR children needed more sessions. This study shows that a 2-year cost-effective early intervention can reduce the incidence of reading difficulties. However, it remains a challenge to make the intervention suited for children in which a lack of preliteracy skills merely seems to reflect a lack of learning opportunities

Word- and Text-Level Processes Contributing to Fluent Reading of Word Lists and Sentences

In this study, we investigated how word- and text-level processes contribute to different types of reading fluency measures. We aimed to increase our understanding of the underlying processes necessary for fluent reading. The sample included 73 Dutch Grade 3 children, who were assessed on serial word reading rate (familiar words), word-list reading fluency (increasingly difficult words), and sentence reading fluency. Word-level processes were individual word recognition speed (discrete word reading) and sequential processing efficiency (serial digit naming). Text-level processes were receptive vocabulary and syntactic skills. The results showed that word- and text-level processes combined accounted for a comparable amount of variance in all fluency outcomes. Both word-level processes were moderate predictors of all fluency outcomes. However, vocabulary only moderately predicted sentence reading fluency, and syntactic skills merely contributed to sentence reading fluency indirectly through vocabulary. The findings indicate that sequential processing efficiency has a crucial role in reading fluency across various measures besides individual word recognition speed. Additionally, text-level processes come into play when complexity and context availability of fluency measures increases, but the exact timing requires further study. Findings are discussed in terms of future directions and their possible value for diagnostic assessment and intervention of reading difficulties

Personality Traits of Special Forces Operators:Comparing Commandos, Candidates, and Controls

Dutch special forces operators, also known as commandos, perform inmentally and physically tough environments. An important question for recruitment and selection of commandos is whether they have particular personality traits. To answer this question, we first examined differences in personality traits between 110 experienced Dutchmale commandos and a control sample of 275 men in the same age range. Second, we measured the personality traits at the start of the special forces selection program and compared the scores of candidates who later graduated (n = 53) or dropped out (n = 138). Multilevel Bayesian models and t tests revealed that commandos were less neurotic (d = −0.58), more conscientious (d = 0.45), and markedly less open to experiences (d = −1.13) than the matched civilian group. Furthermore, there was a tendency for graduates to be less neurotic (d = −0.27) and more conscientious (d = 0.24) than dropouts. For selection, personality traits do not appear discriminative enough for graduation success and other factors need to be accounted for as well, such as other psychological constructs and physical performance. On the other hand, these results provide interesting clues for using personality traits to recruit people for the special forces progra

Low Satisfaction with Normative Life Domains in Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa

OBJECTIVE: Low satisfaction with normative life domains might be an important factor in the persistence of anorexia nervosa (AN). Initial evidence in non‐clinical samples showed that lower satisfaction with normative life domains was related to more intense eating disorder symptoms. As a critical next step, the current study examined satisfaction with normative life domains in a clinical sample. Specifically, the present study tested whether adolescents with AN reported lower satisfaction with normative life domains than adolescents without an eating disorder. METHOD: Adolescents with AN (n = 69) and adolescents without an eating disorder matched on age, gender and educational level (n = 69) completed the Brief Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale to assess satisfaction with five life domains (family, friendships, school, self and living location) and life in general. RESULTS: Adolescents with AN reported significantly lower satisfaction with normative life domains than the comparison group. Subsequent analyses showed that this overall group difference was primarily driven by adolescents with AN reporting lower satisfaction with the self, school experience and life in general. CONCLUSIONS: Findings supported the hypothesis that adolescents with AN show relatively low satisfaction with meaningful, non‐AN‐related life domains. This points to the potential relevance of enhancing satisfaction with specific life domains to optimize treatment effectiveness