The role of vocabulary in reading efficiency in Spanish

Abstract This study explored the relationships between reading efficiency and metalinguistic awareness, reading fluency, and surface and deep vocabulary in 364 Spanish schoolchildren in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades of primary school, using a Multiple Indicators, Multiple Causes (MIMIC) model within the framework of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results suggested a notable direct association between metalinguistic awareness and word/pseudoword reading fluency and reading efficiency, and a smaller but potentially meaningful contribution of vocabulary. A direct association between reading fluency and vocabulary was also observed. Indirect associations were observed between reading fluency and reading efficiency through the potential mediation of vocabulary knowledge. Overall, phonological and morphological awareness appeared to have the greatest influence on reading efficiency, while both deep and shallow vocabulary may contribute to reading in a transparent orthography such as that of Spanish.