Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health
Children with dyslexia, compared with typically reading peers, are at increased risk of internalising (e.g., anxiety) and externalising (e.g., aggression) mental health concerns; why this is the case is largely unknown. Our aim was to explore the socio-emotional experience of growing up with dyslexi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
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WILEY
2023
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| Online Access: | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93196 |
| _version_ | 1848765708981239808 |
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| author | Wilmot, Adrienne Pizzey, Hannah Leitão, Suze Hasking, Penelope Boyes, Mark |
| author_facet | Wilmot, Adrienne Pizzey, Hannah Leitão, Suze Hasking, Penelope Boyes, Mark |
| author_sort | Wilmot, Adrienne |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Children with dyslexia, compared with typically reading peers, are at increased risk of internalising (e.g., anxiety) and externalising (e.g., aggression) mental health concerns; why this is the case is largely unknown. Our aim was to explore the socio-emotional experience of growing up with dyslexia from both child and parent perspectives. In so doing, we aimed to gain a better understanding of self-esteem and mental health in the context of dyslexia. One-to-one semi-structured interviews with 17 children with reading difficulties (aged 9–14 years; 16 with a diagnosis of dyslexia) and their mothers (interviewed separately) were analysed using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis approach with a neurodiversity lens. We developed three themes to address the research aim: (1) Different in a good/bad way; (2) Exhausted and overwhelmed; and (3) It takes a community: Family school connections. Children discussed having “worries” and experiencing school-related stress and embarrassment. Mothers perceived children's internalising and externalising behaviour (meltdowns), school refusal, and homework resistance as emotional responses to children's school struggles due to poor “person-environment fit.” Our analysis highlights the particular importance of parent support, friendship, and school-connectedness for the wellbeing of children with dyslexia. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:39:33Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-93196 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:39:33Z |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| publisher | WILEY |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-931962023-10-04T00:59:14Z Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health Wilmot, Adrienne Pizzey, Hannah Leitão, Suze Hasking, Penelope Boyes, Mark Social Sciences Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Education, Special Psychology, Educational Rehabilitation Education & Educational Research Psychology dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem EMOTION REGULATION READING DIFFICULTIES DUTCH CHILDREN IMPACT NEURODIVERSITY CONNECTEDNESS STRATEGIES ATTACHMENT dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem Humans Child Mental Health Dyslexia Parents Reading Schools Humans Dyslexia Parents Mental Health Schools Reading Child Children with dyslexia, compared with typically reading peers, are at increased risk of internalising (e.g., anxiety) and externalising (e.g., aggression) mental health concerns; why this is the case is largely unknown. Our aim was to explore the socio-emotional experience of growing up with dyslexia from both child and parent perspectives. In so doing, we aimed to gain a better understanding of self-esteem and mental health in the context of dyslexia. One-to-one semi-structured interviews with 17 children with reading difficulties (aged 9–14 years; 16 with a diagnosis of dyslexia) and their mothers (interviewed separately) were analysed using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis approach with a neurodiversity lens. We developed three themes to address the research aim: (1) Different in a good/bad way; (2) Exhausted and overwhelmed; and (3) It takes a community: Family school connections. Children discussed having “worries” and experiencing school-related stress and embarrassment. Mothers perceived children's internalising and externalising behaviour (meltdowns), school refusal, and homework resistance as emotional responses to children's school struggles due to poor “person-environment fit.” Our analysis highlights the particular importance of parent support, friendship, and school-connectedness for the wellbeing of children with dyslexia. 2023 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93196 10.1002/dys.1729 English http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ WILEY fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Social Sciences Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Education, Special Psychology, Educational Rehabilitation Education & Educational Research Psychology dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem EMOTION REGULATION READING DIFFICULTIES DUTCH CHILDREN IMPACT NEURODIVERSITY CONNECTEDNESS STRATEGIES ATTACHMENT dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem Humans Child Mental Health Dyslexia Parents Reading Schools Humans Dyslexia Parents Mental Health Schools Reading Child Wilmot, Adrienne Pizzey, Hannah Leitão, Suze Hasking, Penelope Boyes, Mark Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title | Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title_full | Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title_fullStr | Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title_full_unstemmed | Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title_short | Growing up with dyslexia: Child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| title_sort | growing up with dyslexia: child and parent perspectives on school struggles, self-esteem, and mental health |
| topic | Social Sciences Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Education, Special Psychology, Educational Rehabilitation Education & Educational Research Psychology dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem EMOTION REGULATION READING DIFFICULTIES DUTCH CHILDREN IMPACT NEURODIVERSITY CONNECTEDNESS STRATEGIES ATTACHMENT dyslexia mental health neurodiversity self-esteem Humans Child Mental Health Dyslexia Parents Reading Schools Humans Dyslexia Parents Mental Health Schools Reading Child |
| url | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93196 |