New Directions in the Study of Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Abstract

The Conference at the University of Oviedo, Spain, within the 44th Annual Meeting of the International Academy for Research in Learning Disabilities, was an excellent opportunity to share knowledge, explore perspectives and reflect on the study of neurodevelopmental disorders in Europe and elsewhere in the world. The William M. Cruickshank Memorial Keynote Address, New Directions in the Study of Neurodevelopmental Disorders, covered a broad range of topics relevant to cognition, intelligence, and achievement. It also provided the opportunity to present parts of our current work pertinent to the study of neurodevelopmental dysfunctions and the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA) ITN Neo-PRISM-C project. The presentation began by focusing on what we study and how and why we study what we study about neurodevelopmental disorders. This was followed by a discussion about the brain and (learning) behaviour, accompanied by some relevant evidence on the neurological basis for reading difficulties, particularly the phonological and visual deficits pathways in the framework of the magnocellular deficit theory. The session concluded with a discussion of the comorbidity of various disorders and the use of the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) framework as an alternative to the traditional diagnostic categories for the study of neurodevelopmental disorders. Examples of how neuroscience research can contribute to this endeavour were also provided.