How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading

Reading is pivotal for educational and occupational success, hence, understanding the factors contributing to reading skill variation is a major educational objective. Although cognitive and neurobiological factors that influence reading are well documented, the contributions of environmental factor...

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Main Authors: Martina Villa, Nabin Koirala, Meaghan V. Perdue, Lee Branum-Martin, Nicole Landi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000568
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author Martina Villa
Nabin Koirala
Meaghan V. Perdue
Lee Branum-Martin
Nicole Landi
author_facet Martina Villa
Nabin Koirala
Meaghan V. Perdue
Lee Branum-Martin
Nicole Landi
author_sort Martina Villa
collection DOAJ
description Reading is pivotal for educational and occupational success, hence, understanding the factors contributing to reading skill variation is a major educational objective. Although cognitive and neurobiological factors that influence reading are well documented, the contributions of environmental factors, such as socioeconomic status (SES), fiv to reading-related neurobiology are relatively understudied. Studies have shown that SES predicts reading and the integrity of reading-related white matter tracts; however, the direct and indirect contributions of SES to reading via white matter integrity remain undifferentiated. Further, while oral language (both phonological awareness [PA] and vocabulary) has been positively associated with both SES and reading, only a few studies have attempted to model the SES-reading association via oral language, and none of them included white matter integrity. The current study closes these gaps by using Structural Equation Modeling in a large sample of children from the Healthy Brain Network biobank, testing the (in)direct paths by which SES (parental education) influences reading through oral language and white matter integrity. Results reveal an effect of SES on reading that is indirectly affected by oral language, though not by white matter integrity. These findings reinforce the role of oral language skills as a key pathway linking SES and reading.
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spelling doaj-art-03e4d00bd88b4e52927c23c4d00566d92025-08-20T03:11:03ZengElsevierDevelopmental Cognitive Neuroscience1878-92932025-06-017310156110.1016/j.dcn.2025.101561How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and readingMartina Villa0Nabin Koirala1Meaghan V. Perdue2Lee Branum-Martin3Nicole Landi4Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, USA; Child Study Center, Yale University, USA; Corresponding author at: Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, USA.Child Study Center, Yale University, USA; Brain Imaging Research Core, University of Connecticut, USA; Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, USAUniversity of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA; Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, Georgia State University, USADepartment of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, USA; Child Study Center, Yale University, USAReading is pivotal for educational and occupational success, hence, understanding the factors contributing to reading skill variation is a major educational objective. Although cognitive and neurobiological factors that influence reading are well documented, the contributions of environmental factors, such as socioeconomic status (SES), fiv to reading-related neurobiology are relatively understudied. Studies have shown that SES predicts reading and the integrity of reading-related white matter tracts; however, the direct and indirect contributions of SES to reading via white matter integrity remain undifferentiated. Further, while oral language (both phonological awareness [PA] and vocabulary) has been positively associated with both SES and reading, only a few studies have attempted to model the SES-reading association via oral language, and none of them included white matter integrity. The current study closes these gaps by using Structural Equation Modeling in a large sample of children from the Healthy Brain Network biobank, testing the (in)direct paths by which SES (parental education) influences reading through oral language and white matter integrity. Results reveal an effect of SES on reading that is indirectly affected by oral language, though not by white matter integrity. These findings reinforce the role of oral language skills as a key pathway linking SES and reading.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000568White matterReadingSocio Economic Status (SES)Oral Language
spellingShingle Martina Villa
Nabin Koirala
Meaghan V. Perdue
Lee Branum-Martin
Nicole Landi
How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
White matter
Reading
Socio Economic Status (SES)
Oral Language
title How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
title_full How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
title_fullStr How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
title_full_unstemmed How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
title_short How does SES influence the brain circuitry for literacy? Modeling the association between SES, oral language, white matter integrity, and reading
title_sort how does ses influence the brain circuitry for literacy modeling the association between ses oral language white matter integrity and reading
topic White matter
Reading
Socio Economic Status (SES)
Oral Language
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000568
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