Patricia M. Zebrowski

Sentence Position and Syntactic Complexity of Stuttering in Early Childhood: A Longitudinal Study

UNLABELLED The purpose of the present investigation was to assess longitudinal word- and sentence-level measures of stuttering in young children. Participants included 12 stuttering and non-stuttering children between 36 and 71 months of age at an initial visit who exhibited a range of stuttering rates. Parent-child spontaneous speech samples were obtained over a period of two years at six-month intervals. Each speech sample was transcribed, and both stuttering-like disfluencies (SLDs) and other disfluencies (ODs) were coded. Word- and sentence-level measures of SLDs were used to assess linguistic characteristics of stuttering. Results of the word-level analysis indicated that stuttering was most likely to occur at the sentence-initial position, and that a tendency to stutter on function words was present only at the sentence-initial position. Results of the sentence-level analyses indicated that sentences containing ODs and those containing SLDs were both significantly longer and more complex than fluent sentences, but did not differ from each other. Word- and sentence-level measures also did not change across visits. Results were taken to suggest that both SLDs and ODs originate during the same stage of sentence planning. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES The reader will be able to: (1) describe the importance of sentence position in the occurrence of speech disfluencies, (2) describe the relation between sentence complexity and the occurrence of speech disfluencies, and (3) describe the potential role of different aspects of sentence planning on the occurrence of speech disfluencies.

Behaviors at the onset of stuttering

Abstract The purpose of this investigation was to identify speech and nonspeech behaviors associated with the stuttering of children close to the onset of their problem. Ten stuttering children (nine boys and one girl) were identified through a) parent interviews indicating that these children begun stuttering during the previous 12 months prior to data collection, and b) the presence of 3 or more stutterings per 100 words of conversational speech. Fourteen associated speech and nonspeech behaviors and speech dysfluency type were identified and quantified for 10 stutterings from each of the 10 subjects. The 14 associated behaviors and speech dysfluency type were further reduced to form three indices: a) Sound Prolongation Index, b) Nonspeech Behavior Index, and c) Behavioral Variety Index. Results indicated that all of the children exhibited speech and nonspeech behaviors in association with their stuttering. Additionally, chronological age did not significantly correlate with any of the three indices investigated. Findings are taken to suggest that the quantification of speech dysfluency type and the speech and nonspeech behaviors associated with stuttering are more sensitive than chronological age as indicators of the development of stuttering.

The effect of maternal rate reduction on the stuttering, speech rates and linguistic productions of children who stutter: evidence from individual dyads

The clinical literature in childhood stuttering contains numerous suggestions for parents to use both a reduced speech rate and longer turn-switching pauses when talking with their children who stutter. To date, empirical support for these recommendations has been sparse. In addition, the few studies which have examined the effects of maternal speech rate reduction on the speech and language of stuttering and non-stuttering children have yielded inconsistent results. These equivocal findings are most likely related to the differences among investigations, in both subject characteristics and study design. In this paper we present the results from a preliminary study of maternal speech rate reduction, using young children who stutter and their mothers. Our purpose was to reveal individual patterns of response to a slowed maternal speech rate, through observation of specific speech and language behaviours and behaviour changes in separate dyads. Findings suggest that the relationship between childrens stutt...

Articulation rate and its relationship to disfluency type, duration, and temperament in preschool children who stutter

UNLABELLED The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between articulation rate, frequency and duration of disfluencies of different types, and temperament in preschool children who stutter (CWS). In spontaneous speech samples from 19 CWS (mean age=3:9; years:months), we measured articulation rate, the frequency and duration of (a) sound prolongations; (b) sound-syllable repetitions; (c) single syllable whole word repetitions; and (d) clusters. Temperament was assessed with the Childrens Behavior Questionnaire (Rothbart et al., 2001). There was a significant negative correlation between articulation rate and average duration of sound prolongations (p<0.01), and between articulation rate and frequency of stuttering-like disfluencies (SLDs) (p<0.05). No other relationships proved statistically significant. Results do not support models of stuttering development that implicate particular characteristics of temperament as proximal contributors to stuttering; however, this is likely due to the fact that current methods, including the ones used in the present study, do not allow for the identification of a functional relationship between temperament and speech production. Findings do indicate that for some CWS, relatively longer sound prolongations co-occur with relatively slower speech rate, which suggests that sound prolongations, across a range of durations, may represent a distinct type of SLD, not just in their obvious perceptual characteristics, but in their potential influence on overall speech production at multiple levels. LEARNING OUTCOMES Readers will be able to describe the relationship between stuttering-like disfluencies, articulation rate and temperament in children who stutter, and discuss different measurements of articulation rate.

Counseling Parents of Children Who Stutter

To create a verbal environment that facilitates children’s speech fluency, parents of children who stutter may need to rely on suggestions from speech-language pathologists. However, it appears tha...

Temporal Aspects of the Conversations between Children Who Stutter and Their Parents.

The purpose of this article is to review descriptive and experimental studies of the conversational turn-management timing behaviors used by children who stutter and their parents. Research findings support the notion that, in general, the temporal aspects of conversations between children who stutter and their parents do not differ significantly from those observed in parent-nonstuttering child conversational dyads; however, for some children who stutter, parental manipulation of factors such as speech rate and response-time latency (RTL) may enhance the childs development of speech fluency. Further, it is apparent that factors such as the age and general speech and language abilities of the child, the severity of the stuttering problem, and the type(s) of disfluencies the child most frequently produces, as well as the difference between the childs and parents speaking rate, turntaking rate, and so forth, need to be carefully considered when deciding whether to use such therapeutic strategies.

Phonetically Governed Voicing Onset and Offset in Preschool Children Who Stutter.

UNLABELLED Phonetically governed changes in the fundamental frequency (F₀) of vowels that immediately precede and follow voiceless stop plosives have been found to follow consistent patterns in adults and children as young as four years of age. In the present study, F₀ onset and offset patterns in 14 children who stutter (CWS) and 14 children who do not stutter (CWNS) were investigated to evaluate differences in speech production. Participants produced utterances containing two VCV sequences. F₀ patterns in the last ten vocal cycles in the preceding vowel (voicing offset) and the first ten vocal cycles in the subsequent vowel (voicing onset) were analyzed. A repeated measures ANOVA revealed no group differences between the CWS and CWNS in either voicing onset or offset gestures. Both groups showed patterns of F₀ onset and offset that were consistent with the mature patterns seen in children and adults in previous studies. These findings suggest that in both CWS and CWNS, a mature pattern of voicing onset and offset is present by age 3;6. This study suggests that there is no difference between CWS and CWNS in the coordination of respiratory and laryngeal systems during voicing onset or offset. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES The reader will be able to: (a) discuss the importance of investigating children who stutter close to the onset of stuttering; (b) describe the typical change in F₀ during voicing onset; (c) discuss the potential implications of these results with regard to future research.

Motor practice effects and sensorimotor integration in adults who stutter: Evidence from visuomotor tracking performance.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to utilize a visuomotor tracking task, with both the jaw and hand, to add to the literature regarding non-speech motor practice and sensorimotor integration (outside of auditory-motor integration domain) in adults who do (PWS) and do not (PWNS) stutter. METHOD Participants were 15 PWS (14 males, mean age = 27.0) and 15 PWNS (14 males, mean age = 27.2). Participants tracked both predictable and unpredictable moving targets separately with their jaw and their dominant hand, and accuracy was assessed by calculating phase and amplitude difference between the participant and the target. Motor practice effect was examined by comparing group performance over consecutive tracking trials of predictable conditions as well as within the first trial of same conditions. RESULTS Results showed that compared to PWNS, PWS were not significantly different in matching either the phase (timing) or the amplitude of the target in both jaw and hand tracking of predictable and unpredictable targets. Further, there were no significant between-group differences in motor practice effects for either jaw or hand tracking. Both groups showed improved tracking accuracy within and between the trials. CONCLUSION Our findings revealed no statistically significant differences in non-speech motor practice effects and integration of sensorimotor feedback between PWS and PWNS, at least in the context of the visuomotor tracking tasks employed in the study. In general, both talker groups exhibited practice effects (i.e., increased accuracy over time) within and between tracking trials during both jaw and hand tracking. Implications for these results are discussed. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES The reader will be able to: (a) describe the importance of motor learning and sensory-motor integration for speech, (b) summarize past research on PWSs performance during speech and nonspeech motor tasks, and (c) describe the relation between different aspects of speech and non-speech motor control and stuttering.

The Relationship Between Grammatical Development and Disfluencies in Preschool Children Who Stutter and Those Who Recover

Purpose The dual diathesis stressor model indicates that a mismatch between a childs endogenous linguistic abilities and exogenous linguistic contexts is one factor that contributes to stuttering behavior. In the present study, we used a developmental framework to investigate if reducing the gap between endogenous and exogenous linguistics factors would result in less disfluency for typical children, children who recover from stuttering (CWS-R), and children who persist. Method Children between 28 and 43 months of age participated in this study: 8 typical children, 5 CWS-R, and 8 children who persist. The children were followed for 18 months with language samples collected every 6 months. The Index of Productive Syntax (Scarborough, 1990) served as a measure of endogenous grammatical ability. Length and complexity of active declarative sentences served as a measure of exogenous linguistic demand. A hierarchical linear model analysis was conducted using a mixed-model approach. Results The results partially corroborate the dual diathesis stressor model. Disfluencies significantly decreased in CWS-R as grammatical abilities (not age) increased. Language development may serve as a protective factor or catalyst for recovery for CWS-R. As grammatical ability grew and the gap between linguistic ability and demand decreased; however, none of the three groups was more likely to produce disfluencies in longer and more complex utterances.

Self-perceived competence and social acceptance of young children who stutter: Initial findings

PURPOSE The goals of this study were to determine whether young children who stutter (CWS) perceive their own competence and social acceptance differently than young children who do not stutter (CWNS), and to identify the predictors of perceived competence and social acceptance in young speakers. METHOD We administered the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children (PSPCSA; Harter & Pike, 1984) to 13 CWS and 14 CWNS and examined group differences. We also collected information on the childrens genders, temperaments, stuttering frequencies, language abilities, and phonological skills to identify which of these factors predicted PSPCSA scores. RESULTS CWS, as a group, did not differ from CWNS in their perceived general competence or social acceptance. Gender predicted scores of perceived general competence, and stuttering frequency predicted perceived social acceptance. Temperament, language abilities, and phonological skills were not significant predictors of perceived competence or social acceptance in our sample. CONCLUSIONS While CWS did not significantly differ from CWNS in terms of perceived competence and social acceptance, when both talker groups were considered together, girls self-reported greater perceived competence than boys. Further, lower stuttering frequency was associated with greater perceived social acceptance. These preliminary findings provide motivation for further empirical study of the psychosocial components of childhood stuttering. LEARNING OUTCOMES Readers will be able to describe the constructs of perceived competence and social acceptance in young children, and whether early stuttering plays a role in the development of these constructs.