Biography

Richard K. Wagner is a renowned professor of psychology at Florida State University. His research focuses on the development of reading and spelling skills, dyslexia, and the assessment of reading abilities. Wagner has made significant contributions to understanding the cognitive processes involved in reading and the factors influencing reading development and disabilities. His work is characterized by its rigorous empirical approach and interdisciplinary nature, integrating insights from psychology, education, and cognitive science.
Wagner earned his PhD in Psychology from Yale University. His early research focused on the cognitive processes involved in reading and the development of reading skills in children. Over time, his interests expanded to include dyslexia and the assessment of reading abilities. Wagner’s work has been instrumental in developing educational interventions and assessment tools aimed at improving reading skills and identifying reading disabilities in children.
In addition to his research, Wagner has been actively involved in various academic and professional organizations. He has served on the editorial boards of several prestigious journals and has been involved in numerous international collaborations and projects. His contributions to the field have been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR) Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award and the Samuel T. Orton Award from the International Dyslexia Association. Wagner continues to influence the field through his research, publications, and participation in academic and professional organizations.

Selected Publications:

   Wagner, R. K., & Torgesen, J. K. (1987). The nature of phonological processing and its causal  role in the acquisition of reading skills. Psychological Bulletin, 101(2), 192.
   Wagner, R. K., Torgesen, J. K., & Rashotte, C. A. (1994). Development of reading-related phonological processing abilities: New evidence of bidirectional causality from a latent variable longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 30(1), 73.
   Wagner, R. K. (2018). Why is it so difficult to diagnose dyslexia and how can we do it better? The Examiner, 7. Washington DC: International Dyslexia Society.
   Wagner, R. K., Edwards, A. A., Malkowski, A., Schatschneider, C., Joyner, R.E., Wood, S., & Zirps F.A. (2019). Combining old and new for better understanding and predicting dyslexia. Child and Adolescent Development, 165, 11-23
   Wagner, R. K., Joyner, R. E., Koh, P. W., Malkowski, A., Shenoy, S., Wood, S., Zhang, C., & Zirps, F.A. (2019). Reading related phonological processing in English and other written languages. In Reading Development and Difficulties: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice (Kilpatrick, D.A., Joshi, R.M., and Wagner, R.K. eds). Springer Publishing.