A MATTHEW EFFECT FOR IQ BUT NOT FOR READING - RESULTS FROM A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY

THE MATTHEW effect, which posits that the gap between good and pool readers widens over time, is now widely accepted as a model describing the developmental course of reading ability. This hypothesis is increasingly invoked both to explain and predict change in reading ability over time. Data from the Connecticut Longitudinal Study, a sample survey of Connecticut kindergarten children followed as a longitudinal cohort for 7 years, were examined to address this hypothesis. Results revealed evidence of a Matthew effect for IQ, though the effect was relatively small; there was no evidence to support the notion of a Matthew effect for reading decoding skills.