Reading Processes and Executive Functions: Evidence for Their Association in Middle Childhood

Background: Reading is a fundamental component of education, playing a significantrole in enhancing intelligence, facilitating communication, and promotingindependence. Prior research has established a connection between executive functionsand the development of reading abilities, as these functions affect the allocation ofcognitive resources, comprehension regulation, and problem-solving related to readingtasks. Objective: This investigation examined the relationship between readingprocesses and executive functions among schoolchildren in Cuenca, Ecuador. Method:212 children (M=8.95 years) from six educational institutions took the PROLEC-R Testand the Cognitif CAB PRO. Results: The findings indicated a positive relationshipbetween inhibition and tasks such as “Name of letters,” “Grammatical structures,”“Punctuation marks,” and “Oral comprehension.” Cognitive flexibility exhibitedcorrelations with all variables except for “Understanding texts” and “Name of letters.”Conversely, working memory was linked to all variables, excluding “Name of letters.”Conclusions: These results imply that executive functions, particularly inhibition,cognitive flexibility, and working memory, are crucial for reading development, as theyfacilitate sustained attention, adaptation to new vocabulary, and information retention,thereby enhancing reading comprehension. Improving these capabilities may beessential for optimizing reading outcomes in schoolchildren.