Title: The neural and cognitive basis of motivation in adolescents with reading disorder
Funder: The Academy of Medical Sciences

Abstract: Reading disorder (prevalence:10-15%) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with negative consequences on physical and mental health. Current interventions focus on building reading skill, but children with reading disorder also choose to read less. This lack of reading practice establishes a vicious cycle, as print exposure drives reading proficiency. Twin studies indicate that reduced reading practice has both genetic and environmental origins. Yet, motivation mechanisms are not clearly delineated at the behavioural and neural level. My aim is to understand cognitive, neural, and computational mechanisms underlying reading motivation, focusing on how these differ in adolescents with reading disorder. My objectives are to: 1. Establish how reading reward/motivation differs in individuals with reading disorder 2. Determine how reward systems in the brain contribute to reading in adolescence, and delineate the neural differences characterizing reading disorder I will test neurotypical and reading-disordered adolescents between the ages of 10-18. Using novel behavioural paradigms, I will assess if enjoyment and information-seeking – two crucial motivation mechanisms for reading - are impaired in those with reading disorder. Using brain imaging, I will examine links between neural systems for reward, motivation, and reading, and characterise this interplay in those with reading disorder. Using computational modelling, I will determine if adolescents with reading disorder are sub-optimal information seekers, and assess if providing incentives can influence their performance. My programme will allow us to understand why reading motivation might be impaired in adolescents with reading disorder, and point to how we can design better interventions for this group.

Lay abstract: If knowledge is power, reading offers us the keys to the kingdom of knowledge. We continuously access information through reading – ideas, facts, news, and even how to take medication. However, 10-15% of children have a reading disorder (a heritable neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by a struggle to learn to read, with difficulty deciphering print or comprehending text). Reading disorder has a negative impact on academic achievement, employment prospects, mental health, and physical health. From early on, those with reading disorder fall into a vicious cycle: as they aren’t very good at reading, they don’t choose to read. As they don’t engage with reading, they don’t get better at reading. I want to understand how to break this cycle, and boost reading enjoyment in adolescents with reading disorder. To do so, we need an understanding of why we like reading, and why we engage in sustained practice. I will use innovative methods to assess reading enjoyment and motivation, or the “buzz” we get from reading, in both typical adolescents and those with reading disorder. My methods will focus on the moment-by-moment influences on reading decisions. I will examine behaviour and brain activity to inform us about the value readers attach to words, and assess what strategies are effective in changing reading engagement. My findings will show us how motivation is affected in those with reading disorder, and characterise the brain basis of reading motivation. This will eventually help us develop better therapies and improve outcomes for adolescents with reading disorder.

Research activity codes: 1.1 NORMAL BIOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTIONING;1.2 PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC PROCESSES
Health categories: MENTAL HEALTH