Correlates of externalising and internalising problems in children with dyslexia: An analysis of data from clinical casefiles

ObjectiveAdopting a socio‐ecological perspective, we used data extracted from clinical casefiles to investigate factors associated with externalising and internalising problems in a large, representative sample of children with a diagnosis of dyslexia.MethodThis study is a secondary analysis of data collected by the Dyslexia‐SPELD Foundation in Western Australia. Casefiles for school‐aged children who had received a dyslexia diagnosis in 2014 and 2015 were identified (n = 1,235), and a subset of casefiles were randomly selected for data extraction (n = 454). Of the sample, 58% (n = 262) were male, 42% (n = 192) were female. Ages ranged between 6 and 17-years (M = 12.32, SD = 3.07). Casefiles include results from assessments of literacy‐related achievement, as well as parent‐reported information on behavioural and socio‐emotional development.ResultsAfter controlling for child age, gender, and reading ability, it was found that low self‐esteem, difficulties in emotion regulation, and social skills difficulties were all associated with externalising problems. Additionally, low self‐esteem, difficulties in emotion regulation, and bullying victimisation were all associated with internalising problems. Peer relationship difficulties were indirectly associated with both externalising and internalising problems through associations with low self‐esteem and difficulties in emotion regulation.ConclusionSelf‐esteem, bullying victimisation, emotion regulation, social skills, and peer problems are salient correlates of externalising and internalising problems in children with a diagnosis of dyslexia. Implications for intervention are discussed, both universal school‐based mental health promotion programs, as well as more targeted programs for children with dyslexia.