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A Descriptive Study of Hyperlexia in a Clinically Referred Sample of Children with Developmental Delays

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders volume 32, pages 3–12 (2002)Cite this article

Abstract

In this study, we evaluated the incidence of hyperlexia in a clinically referred sample of 80 children with developmental delays. Based on hypotheses previously formulated in the literature, the study investigated the frequency of hyperlexia among boys and girls, the incidence of hyperlexia in children with Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD)-spectrum compared with non-PDD diagnoses, the range of IQ and of various cognitive skills in children with and without hyperlexia, and the developmental outcomes of children with and without hyperlexia. The results revealed no significant differences in the frequency of hyperlexia in girls compared with boys. However, the frequency of hyperlexia was significantly elevated among children with PDD compared with children with non-PDD diagnoses. The range of IQ and other cognitive skills and the developmental outcomes of children with hyperlexia were comparable to those of children without hyperlexia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Child Study Center, Yale University Medical School, USA

    Elena L. Grigorenko, Ami Klin, David L. Pauls, Catalina Hooper & Fred Volkmar

  2. PACE Center, Department of Psychology, Yale University, USA

    Elena L. Grigorenko

  3. Department of Psychology, Moscow State University, Russia

    Elena L. Grigorenko

  4. Yale College, USA

    Riley Senft

Authors
  1. Elena L. Grigorenko
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  2. Ami Klin
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  3. David L. Pauls
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  4. Riley Senft
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  5. Catalina Hooper
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  6. Fred Volkmar
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Correspondence to Elena L. Grigorenko.

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Grigorenko, E.L., Klin, A., Pauls, D.L. et al. A Descriptive Study of Hyperlexia in a Clinically Referred Sample of Children with Developmental Delays. J Autism Dev Disord 32, 3–12 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017995805511

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017995805511

  • Hyperlexia
  • K-ABC
  • PDD
  • word recognition
  • precocious ability