The genetic correlation between mathematics and reading comprehension (.76) is significantly higher than between mathematics and word decoding (.50)¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associationalr3·q3
Currency · newest study 2012 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q3 i? Reading comprehension showed a high genetic correlation with mathematics (.76), significantly higher than the word decoding–mathematics genetic correlation (.50). → Harlaar 2012
Evidence¶
Harlaar 2012¶
Harlaar, N., Kovas, Y., Dale, P. S., Petrill, S. A., & Plomin, R. (2012). Mathematics is differentially related to reading comprehension and word decoding: Evidence from a genetically-sensitive design. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(3). https://doi.org/10.1037/a0027646
q3 · i? · associational · r3
Multivariate genetic model-fitting on the same 5162-pair TEDS twin sample at age 12. Genetic correlations from the Cholesky model showed reading comprehension correlated with mathematics at ".76", exceeding the word decoding–mathematics genetic correlation of ".50".
"Reading comprehension showed high genetic correlations with both mathematics (.76) and word decoding (.66). The genetic correlation between word decoding and mathematics was .50, significantly lower than the genetic correlation between reading comprehension and mathematics."
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- Etiological links between reading skills and mathematics did not differ across the specific mathematics tests used — related
- At age 12, mathematics is more strongly correlated with reading comprehension than with word decoding at the phenotypic latent-factor level — related
- A common genetic factor influences mathematics, word decoding, and reading comprehension, with substantial genetic overlap across all three domains — related
- Reading comprehension retains genetic and nonshared environmental influences independent of both mathematics and word decoding — related
- Word decoding is significantly more heritable (.84) than mathematics (.60) and reading comprehension (.64) at age 12 — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
genetic-correlation-math-reading-comprehension-exceeds-decoding |
title |
The genetic correlation between mathematics and reading comprehension (.76) is significantly higher than between mathematics and word decoding (.50) |
description |
The genetic correlation between mathematics and reading comprehension (.76) is significantly higher than between mathematics and word decoding (.50) |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2012 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-25 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — harlaar-2012 |
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