Emotional and Cognitive Mechanisms Impacting Reading Skills in Autistic and Non‐Autistic Children

This study focuses on the influence of anxiety on reading decoding and reading comprehension in autistic and non‐autistic children, while also investigating the cognitive mechanisms underlying reading. Eighty‐three participants (7–13 years of age, 46 autistic and 37 non‐autistic) underwent neuropsychological assessments of reading skills. Participant caregivers completed a rating scale of their child's anxiety symptoms. Across all participants, higher anxiety symptoms emerged as significant predictors of poor reading decoding and comprehension. Furthermore, lower verbal IQ moderated the negative relationship between anxiety and reading comprehension ( B = −0.13, p < 0.01), making the negative association stronger. These findings suggest that intact verbal comprehension skills may serve as a protective factor against reading difficulties in the presence of anxiety. Interventions targeting reading comprehension may be supplemented by anxiety coping techniques.