Date of Completion

Spring 5-1-2023

Thesis Advisor(s)

Crystal L. Park

Honors Major

Psychology

Disciplines

Child Psychology | Development Studies | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Abstract

Although it is established that children with learning disabilities tend to experience Reading Anxiety, less is known about this population’s extension to Generalized Anxiety. The current study presents findings from two cohorts of elementary-age children (N=51) over the course of two years during the summer BRAINCamp on the Storrs campus of the University of Connecticut. The current study explores if children with reading and math disabilities, who tend to have anxiety in reading performance, extend Reading Anxiety to the broader domain of Generalized Anxiety. The sample consisted of second to fourth-grade students who met the criteria for learning difficulties and completed all tests assessing anxiety and reading and math performance. The findings demonstrate a correlation between Reading Anxiety and General Anxiety where high reading anxiety extends to high generalized anxiety in 58.33% of participants. General Anxiety had a significant correlation with Mastery Avoidance in both Reading and Math. The findings also suggest a correlation between Reading Anxiety and Mastery Avoidance in both Reading and Math. The present study offers a more nuanced understanding of the extension of Reading Anxiety to Generalized Anxiety in children with learning disabilities.

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