Training in self evaluation of speech performance was combined with a self managed, performance contingent maintenance schedule during the treatment of two young adult stutterers. Covert and overt assessment indicated that whenever the self evaluation training procedure was introduced to the maintenance schedule, it was associated with…

Using comparative speech tasks and EMG recordings to assess the potential of EMG biofeedback-assisted relaxation to reduce stuttering, a preschool child was able to reduce larynegeal tension but not without some difficulty. The small effect of the training was in the direction of less stuttering. (Author/CM)

This paper introduces a special issue focusing on the treatment of preschool and school-age children who stutter and discussing current intervention strategies and procedures. Summaries of the issue's articles are presented, generally contending that fluency disorders can be effectively managed using age-appropriate, individualized techniques and…

This article explores the connections between conversation demands and the ability of children who stutter to maintain fluency. A model of conversation management useful both in assessment and intervention is introduced. The three-component model considers competencies at the utterance level, suprasegmental level, and discourse level. (Author/JDD)

The influence of visual signals (echo and reverberation) on speech fluency in 60 stutterers and nonstutterers was examined. Visual signals were found to exert a corrective influence on the speech of stutterers but less than the influence of acoustic stimuli. Use of visual signals in combination with acoustic and tactile signals is recommended. (DB)

Stuttering is a complex condition, and, in the past, there was not significant evidence to prove any one theory as to its cause. Most researchers now agree that stuttering is mainly a genetic disorder that is sometimes aggravated or brought on by developmental and environmental factors. In genetic research there have been studies on families in…

In a two part article the author first discusses the importance of fluency, rate, breathstream management, prosody, and self-confidence to the replacement of stuttering with normal speech; and second outlines specific clinical procedures for achieving these goals with adult and adolescent stutterers. (Author/LS)

In recent years, most disagreement about stuttering therapy has boiled down to a preference for one of two major approaches. Some clinicians have preferred to help stutterers learn not to avoid stuttering, but to approach it and to learn to stutter in simpler and easier ways; this approach is known as stuttering modification therapy. Proponents of…

A RATIONALE FOR SPEECH AND HEARING PROGRAM RECORD KEEPING AND REPORTING IS PRESENTED ALONG WITH A COMPREHENSIVE SET OF FORMS. FORMS ARE AVAILABLE TO COVER ALL SITUATIONS IN DIAGNOSIS AND PROGRESS, COMMUNICATION TO OTHER PROFESSIONAL PEOPLE, AND COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS. (MK)

Presented is the syllabus of a training program to prepare therapists to work with stuttering children or adults. Intended for instructors, the information is presented in the form of five major chapters, each of which is divided into units. The unit usually consists of an introduction, suggested lecture topics (with source references), suggested…

Presented are seven papers given at a conference on the application of behavior modification techniques to the treatment of stuttering. An introduction to the papers gives an overview of behavior modification. The two papers of Part I present two approaches to stuttering therapy, one of which is based on operant conditioning and the other on…