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This study compared the attitudes and reactions of thirty preschool and thirty school-age children toward a child speaker with stuttering patterns. An introduction reviewed previous literature on defining stuttering, adults' and children's attitudes toward stuttering, and the stutterer's personality traits. The children of the study rated either a normal child speaker or a child speaker with stuttering patterns on a sociometric scale. In a giving task, the children were asked to choose one of the speakers. Statistical testing revealed that the school-age children had a more negative attitude toward and less social acceptance of the child speaker with stuttering patterns than the normal-speaking child. Implications for the speech-language pathologist in treating the child stutterer are discussed.

Sudėtinga mikčiojimo dinamika, skirtingas šio sutrikimo poveikis komunikacijai ir socialiniam dalyvavimui, aktualizuoja individualius mikčiojančio asmens poreikius atitinkančių pagalbos būdų ir jų derinimo galimybių, aktyvaus mikčiojančiojo ir jo šeimos narių dalyvavimo ugdymo(si) procese, logopedų kompetencijos tobulinimo, mokslinį diskursą. Naujos švietimo politikos, inkliuzinio ugdymo realybės kontekste, išryškėja teorinio ir metodinio pobūdžio, pagalbos mikčiojantiems vaikams, probleminiai klausimai. Disertaciniame tyrime siekiama išsiaiškinti kaip derinami skirtingi logopedinės pagalbos būdai, atsižvelgiant į individualius mikčiojančių moksleivių poreikius, emocinius, kognityvinius ir socialinius mikčiojimo struktūros komponentus, kaip teikiamos pagalbos veiksmingumą vertina ugdymo(si) proceso dalyviai, kuo pasižymi logopedinė pagalba mikčiojantiems moksleiviams taikant į vaiką orientuoto ugdymo principus. Remiantis mikčiojančių moksleivių jų tėvų, logopedų, mokytojų nuomone ir patirtimi, atskleidžiama iki šiol netyrinėta logopedinės pagalbos mikčiojantiems moksleiviams situacija Lietuvoje, apibrėžiami mikčiojimo įveikimo būdai ir metodinės kryptys, identifikuojami teorijos ir logopedinės praktikos prieštaravimai. Atlikto tyrimo tikslas – teorinėmis prielaidomis bei empirinio tyrimo rezultatais sukonstruoti į vaiką orientuoto ugdymo principais grįstą logopedinės pagalbos mikčiojantiesiems modelį, kuris padėtų plėtoti edukacinį teikiamos pagalbos veiksmingumą. / Statistical data shows that adults who stutter constitute 1% and children who stutter from 4–5% of the population. Stuttering therapy is based on the principles of a system of development in relation to other psychological processes, a holistic approach where individual features are emphasized. Thesis research is based on social constructivism, social participation, empowerment theories and child centered educational paradigm. Research aim – to design a model of therapy to pupils who stutter based on child centered educational paradigm. This research (theoretical analysis of stuttering therapy for the pupils who stutter and empirical research, appended with a discussion of foreign scientists) underlined a few essential conclusions, useful while solving problems related to the education of the pupils who stutter, and the potential of implementation of stuttering therapy based on child-oriented educational principles.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the disfluency characteristics of normal 33-39 month old children in order to determine the differential role of the SSI with young children. The following questions were answered: 1. What are the types and frequencies of disfluencies demonstrated by normal 33-39 month old children? 2. How do the scores of normal 33-39 month old children distribute on the Stuttering Severity Instrument?

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1979 F73 / Master of Arts

Little is known about stuttering in signed languages. Although disfluencies are known to occur in deaf users of signed languages, there has been little research suggesting that these disfluencies can be termed "stuttering". Because signed language studies is an emerging field and there are many answers that remain unknown, debate over the appropriate terminology for disfluencies in signed languages persists. While one argument is that stuttering is characterized by disfluencies in oral speech alone, a second argument is that the "stuttering" label can be extended to deaf signed language users as a result of similar neurological activations associated with oral speech and sign. Although not the primary purpose of this report, labeling disfluencies in signed languages as "stuttering" could have several advantages, such that the stuttering label could help individuals qualify for services, and determine the most appropriate ways to go about treating the disorder, clinically. There are several neuropsycholingustic theories which attempt to explain the etiology of stuttering. In this report, I will analyze each of these and suggest ways in which they can be adapted to stuttering in signed languages. The purpose of this report is to explore the idea of stuttering in signed languages and provide a framework and rationale for future studies of similar interest and intent. An examination of stuttering in signed languages will increase our general knowledge and awareness of stuttering, and suggest an alternative modality for which stuttering can be treated clinically. / text

To date, limited research has been reported on stuttering and bilingualism. Existing data reports conflicting results on stuttering characteristics across languages of bilingual people who stutter (PWS). Investigations to date include language acquisition, language proficiency, cultural influence, and linguistic as well as phonetic aspects in bilinguals PWS. Thus, assumptions on causal factors of stuttering are plenty, but research is missing to either support or refute those assumptions. Small sample sizes have been an additional obstacle. The purpose of this study was to analyse stuttering characteristics in German - English bilingual PWS. 15 German - English bilingual PWS, ranging in age between 10 and 59 years (mean = 25) were investigated. For all of the participants, German was acquired first (L1) and English second (L2). L2 exposure ranged from 5 to 20+ years (mean = 10). 15 minute conversational speech samples were collected in each language. In addition, an English proficiency test (Cloze Test) and a post-conversational questionnaire were administered. Analysis focused on differences in stuttering severity across languages, the distribution of stuttered content and function words across languages, and possible relationships between L2 proficiency and stuttering. Results indicated significantly more stuttering in L1 compared to L2. In L1, stuttering occurred significantly more often on content words. In L2, no significant difference between stuttering on function and content words was observed. For percentage of syllables stuttered, across language analysis detected significantly more stuttering on content words in German (L1) and more stuttering on function words in English (L2). No direct correlations between stuttering and language proficiency have been found. Results are discussed in light of current theories of stuttering and relationships to past findings are drawn.

Past research investigating stuttering has cited atypical cerebral lateralization in adults who stutter (AWS) during speech production. The purpose of this study was to measure cerebral activation in AWS as indicated by lip asymmetry. The study included five AWS (mean age = 26 years of age) and five adults who do not stutter (AWNS) (mean age = 25 years of age). The tasks included single-word productions, single-sentence readings and lip pursings. The peak electromyographic (EMG) amplitude was determined for the left upper, right upper, left lower and right lower lip quadrants around the mouth. Overall, EMG amplitudes were higher for the lower lip than the upper lip. Based on examination of peak EMG amplitude, significant differences were found between speaker groups. For both speech and non-speech tasks, the highest EMG amplitude for the AWS and AWNS groups were on the left lower and right lower sides of the mouth, respectively. The AWNS group showed strong correlations in EMG activity across the four lip sites (r>0.97), indicating an overall synchronous lip activity during speech and non-speech tasks. In contrast, the AWS group showed a strong correlation (r=0.97) only for the left upper and left lower lips while the other lip pairings were not strongly correlated (r<0.738) indicating otherwise reduced synchronous lip activity. While the small sample size suggests caution, clear differences in the pattern of lip EMG activity demonstrated in the present study provides evidence of differences between AWS and AWNS in the cerebral activation governing lip movement. The greater left lip activity observed in AWS was indicative of greater right hemisphere cerebral activation while increased right lip activity was indicative of greater left hemisphere participation in AWNS. The results of the present study provided support for the hypotheses of reversed lateralization for speech and non-speech processing and reduced coordination of speech musculature in AWS.

Past theories have shown that stuttering results from a breakdown in the speaker's accurate timing of movement from one sound to the next. The efficacy of timing therapies is based on the proposal that stuttering diminishes as the amount of planning time for the phonetic voice-onset coordinations increases (Perkins, Bell, Johnson & Stocks, 1979). Acoustic information as to the parameters of the timing breakdown is critical to designing fluency facilitation and stuttering treatment programs. The present research investigated differences in word durations in the vicinity of the stuttered moment. Durations of words inunediately preceding and following the stutter were examined and compared to the exact words of a corresponding fluent sample from the same speaker. Stimulus material consisted of 83 phonetically balanced sentences read twice by each subject with an imposed 30 minute break between readings to minimize adaptation effects. Data analysis consisted of spectrographic measurement of durations of words (in msec.) inunediately preceding and following the stuttered word and comparison of durations of the same words from the same speaker's fluent production sample. Word durations before the stuttered sample (BSTUT) were compared to word durations before the nonstuttered sample (BNSTUT). A second comparison looked at the duration of a word after a stuttered word (ASTUT), and that of the nonstuttered sample (ANSTUT). One sample, two-tailed t-tests determined the existence of significant differences at the .OS level of confidence in word durations both preceding and following the stuttered moment when compared to word durations of the fluently produced corresponding match. Word duration patterns are consistent with those found by Viswanath (1989) and suggest that the anticipatory effect of the disruption on word duration is strong followed by a recovery period after the stuttered moment. In conclusion, this finding is consistent with theories suggesting that stuttering is a disorder of timing and supports the efficacy of timing therapies in the management of fluency programs (Andrews, Howie, Dosza & Guitar, 1982; Andrews, Guitar & Howie, 1980, Brayton & Conture, 1978, Ingham, Montgomery & Uliana, 1983). There is need for additional research to corroborate present findings.

Until this point, not much research has examined the difference in temporal characteristics for untreated stutterers in words surrounding a moment of stuttering. It is important to determine whether or not stutterers who have not been in treatment alter the duration of their speech when they stutter versus when they are fluent to determine what aids in the increase of fluency. The purpose of the present study was to examine the duration of the word prior to and following a stuttered word and the duration of the corresponding word in a nonstuttered episode. The following questions were to be addressed: 1) Is there a significant durational difference between a word preceding a stuttered word and the duration of the same word in a corresponding nonstuttered sentence? 2) Is there a significant difference between a word following a stuttered word and the duration of the same word in a corresponding nonstuttered sentence? Three subjects age 16 and older who had not received treatment for at least 4 years were selected. Subjects were recorded reading a list of 83 sentences selected from Fairbanks (1940) twice. Sentences containing a word that was stuttered in one reading and not in the other were used for analysis. The duration of the following word pairs in milliseconds was computed via the CSRE 4.2 program (Jaimeson, D.G., Ramji, K.V., Neary, T., & Baxter, T., 1993): 1) The duration of the word preceding a stuttered word within the same sentence (BSTUT) . 2) The duration of the same word in the corresponding nonstuttered sentence (BNSTUT) . 3) The duration of the word following a stuttered word within the same sentence (ASTUT) . 4) The duration of that same word in the corresponding nonstuttered sentence (ANSTUT) . A total of 144 samples were obtained. A two-tailed ~ test was run at the .05 level of confidence to determine significance between the BSTUT/BNSTUT and ASTUT/ANSTUT word pairs. Results yielded a significant difference between the durations of BSTUT and BNSTUT (P=.017). Conversely, analysis of the difference between ASTUT and ANSTUT revealed no significant difference in durations (P=.47).