University Students with Reading Difficulties: Do Perceived Supports and Comorbid Difficulties Predict Well‐Being and GPA?

Abstract

We examined the impact of the number of comorbid difficulties, social support, and community support on life satisfaction and academic achievement among 120 university students or recent graduates with self‐reported reading difficulties. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing perceived social support, perceived community support, the number of comorbid difficulties in addition to reading difficulty, life satisfaction, and academic achievement (grade point average). Results supported a main effect model in which the number of comorbid difficulties and social, but not community, support predicted life satisfaction. Social and community support did not moderate the relationship between the number of comorbid difficulties and life satisfaction, lending no support to the buffering effect hypothesis. However, a mediation model showed that social support partially mediated the relationship between the number of comorbid difficulties and life satisfaction. Academic achievement did not correlate with any included variable.