This study examined the levels of linguistic demand in maternal language to stuttering and nonstuttering children. No significant or observable differences were detected in the relative level of linguistic demand posed by parents of stuttering children very close to onset of symptoms. Results do not support theories that parental language demands…

What should parents of a child who stutters do if their child speaks more than one language? Research shows that a child's language skills can affect his or her fluency, according to the nonprofit Stuttering Foundation of America. However, it has not been proven that speaking two languages in the home since birth causes stuttering. If the child is…

In the profession of speech-language pathology, it is commonly reported that children who stutter, as a group, are more likely to have phonological and language disorders than their non-stuttering peers. Some support for this belief comes from survey studies that have questioned speech-language pathologists about the children on their caseloads…

This paper reflects on the application of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) to the field of stuttering. It is argued that the SFL theory may offer insight into the impact that stuttering has on language use. Two case studies are presented to illustrate the application of SFL theory. The two SFL analyses found to be of most use in this pilot…

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…

We investigated the role of delayed cerebral maturation, hemisphere asymmetry and regional differences in children with stuttering and healthy controls during resting state and hyperventilation, using conventional EEG techniques and quantitative EEG (QEEG) analysis. This cross-sectional case control study included 26 children with stuttering and…

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…

This article suggests a possible link between incipient stuttering and early difficulty in language formulation. The hypothesis offers a unifying explanation of an array of empirical observations. Among these observations are the following: early stuttering occurs only on the first word of a syntactic structure; stuttering does not appear to be…

Purpose: Previous research has demonstrated the fluency-improving effect of reducing the occurrence of short-duration, phonated intervals (PIs; approximately 30-150 ms) in individuals who stutter, prompting the hypothesis that PIs in these individuals' speech are not distributed normally, particularly in the short PI ranges. It has also been…

This leaflet provides a summary of research and recent advances in understanding stuttering. Stuttering is defined as a disorder in which the rhythmic flow of speech is frequently disrupted by repetitions of sounds or syllables. The leaflet outlines possible causes of stuttering, methods of measurement of fluency and work on a uniform method of…