Stuttering characteristics, assessment, and treatment principles present challenges to assessment and treatment that can be addressed with virtual reality (VR) technology. This article describes how VR can be used to assist clinicians in meeting some of these challenges with adults who stutter. A review of current VR research at the Stuttering…

The present study investigated perceptual characteristics of speech in persons with stuttering before and after speech therapy. Five adult stutterers served as subjects. All the stutterers underwent prolongation therapy. Percentage of dysfluency, rate of reading, and type of dysfluencies were calculated in reading and spontaneous speech, before…

Background: The development of evidence-based practice, which is increasingly popular in stuttering treatment, is closely linked to the development of outcome measures. Aims: Two approaches to the development of stuttering treatment outcome measures are outlined. The first is the deductive, top-down approach, where the development of specific…

Guidelines for documenting treatment efficacy for young children who stutter are suggested and illustrated. Measures in four realms are delineated: (1) conditions of documentation, (2) dependent variables, (3) establishment of treatment integrity, and (4) verification of the relationship between treatment and outcome. (Author/DB)

Background: Similar positive results (e.g. immediate decreases in stuttering frequency and a 60-80% recovery rate from stuttering) have been reported for numerous therapeutic protocols for treating childhood stuttering, many of which have been diametrically opposite in their orientations and implementations. For example, Johnson advocated indirect…

This study of three males who stutter and two males with normal speech examined the effects of the Hollins Precision Fluency Shaping Program. Results indicate that the behavioral treatment was effective in changing the fluent speech of the subject with respect to respiration, laryngeal valving, and articulation. (Author/CR)

The paper reports on a two-year project to describe factors related to conducting stuttering therapy with 20 elementary school children (mostly Mexican-American) in public school settings. Both the "stutter fluently" and the "speak fluently" approaches were used. Therapy results, scheduling difficulties, and cultural considerations are presented.…

This study investigated changes in the speech patterns of young adult male subjects when stuttering was modified by deliberately prolonging speech. Three subjects showed clinically significant stuttering reductions when using prolonged speech to reduce their stuttering. Resulting speech was perceptually stutter free. Acoustic and…

This study analyzed spontaneous speech samples of 10 children (ages 10-14) who stuttered, with no history of treatment based on prolonged speech. Acoustic measures showed no significant posttreatment increases in durations of acoustic segments. However, for acoustic measures of vowel duration and articulation rate, posttreatment speech samples…

Article examines the effects of self-modeling from repeated observations of oneself on edited videotapes as an intervention for stuttering in three adolescent students. After viewing intervention tapes, students' stuttering fell substantially below baseline levels. A two-year follow-up indicated that Student 3 did not stutter in conversational…

Presents a rationale and methodology for a self-adjusting "fluency sensitive" approach to working with children who exhibit overt speech-fluency interruptions and a minimal amount of avoidance behavior. The approach emphasizes repeated experiences of volitional increases and decreases in loudness and pauses. Case examples demonstrate how several…

Purpose: This article presents, and explains the issues behind, the Stuttering Treatment Research Evaluation and Assessment Tool (STREAT), an instrument created to assist clinicians, researchers, students, and other readers in the process of critically appraising reports of stuttering treatment research. Method: The STREAT was developed by…

Purpose: The aims of this study were to evaluate the efficacy of telehealth delivery of the Lidcombe Program of Early Stuttering Intervention, compared with a control group, and to determine the number of children who could be regarded as "responders." Method: A speech-language pathologist provided telehealth delivery of the Lidcombe…

A series of single-subject experiments evaluated the effects of frequency-altered auditory feedback (FAF) on the speech performance of four adult males who stutter. FAF was compared with normal auditory feedback in oral reading and spontaneous speech. Results indicate no consistencies across subjects in responses to FAF. (Author/CR)

Reports a long-term follow-up of the effects of self-modeling on the reduction of stuttering in two groups of students who initially evidenced different mean percentages of stuttered words. Results reveal that students involved in the initial study who initially exhibited substantially higher mean percentages of stuttered words, maintained their…