Fluency Midterm

What is stuttering?

disruption in the fluency of verbal expression

What causes stuttering?

unknown

How many people stutter in the US?

1%

What is the prevalence of stuttering in children in preschool?

4%

Do males or females stutter more?

males

Do people who stutter always stutter?

no`

What are the characteristics of stuttering?

core behaviors, secondary behaviors, feelings and attitudes

What are the core behaviors of stuttering?

repetitions, prolongations, and blocks

What should a clinician consider when evaluating a client’s fluency?

Name 4 risk facts associated with stuttering.

Family History (68% of PWS have a family member that stutters)
Age (greater before the age of 5)
Child's reaction to stuttering
Child's pattern of stuttering

What are 3 environmental risk factors associated with stuttering?

Communication style
Parental expectations
Important events
Family reactions

When is the onset of stuttering for the majority of children?

age 4

Is the onset of stuttering usually acute or gradual?

gradual

What type of disfluencies are the most common when stuttering is emerging?

Repetitions and voiced or voiceless prolongations

______ of children who are diagnosed as beginning to stutter show sign of tension.

1/3

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? Fi-fi-fi-fine

part-word repetition (stuttering-like)
sound and syllable repetitions
usually occurs at the beginning of words

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? I-I-I-I-I can’t

whole-word repetition (stuttering-like)
usually single-syllable words
usually repeated once or twice

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? I will I will try again

phrase repetition (nonstuttering-like)
repetitions of units consisting of 2 or more words
usually repeated once or twice

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? Um I err I am okay

interjections (nonstuttering-like)
some people who stutter use interjections to hold listen's attention while deciding what to say next
most people who stutter use them to avoid stuttering

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? I want the purple, no I mean the pink one

revisions (nonstuttering-like)
incomplete phrases or utterances that the speaker does not complete

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? I want to ssssssstop working

prolongations (stuttering-like)
the lengthening of a sound for 1/2 second +

Name and describe the following types of disfluencies. Stuttering or nonstuttering-like? I—--if you —can

broken words (stuttering-like)
abnormal pauses within words less than 5 seconds

List the stuttering-like disfluencies

repetitions (part word, whole word), prolongations, blocks, tense pauses

What are four possible associated motor behaviors that a person who stutters may experience?

tension in facial muscles
tension in the chest muscles
grinding of teeth
laryngeal tension
hand and feet movement
closing the eyes
quivering of the nostrils
moving the head back

What are secondary behaviors?

Between ______ and _______ children commonly have normal non disfluencies due to rapid expressive and receptive acquisition of language.

2.5 and 4

Explain how we know the difference between stuttering and normal disfluencies.

frequenncy
type
duration

Explain 3 conditions that reduce the severity of stuttering.

speaking in a nonhabitual manner
shadowing
speaking in chorus
singing
using a metronome
experiencing delayed auditory feedback
speaking to animals and young children
speaking in monotone
adaptation

What are 2 conditions that make increase an individual’s stuttering severity?

speaking on the telephone
saying one's own name
Speaking to authority figures
speaking to large audiences

Explain abnormalities in breathing that may be observed during stuttering (3)

thoracic breathing
clavicular breathing
irregular breathing cycles
prolonged expirations and inspirations
complete cessation of breathing

What phonatory abnormalities may occur (2)?

breath holding
glottal fry

What are 2 abnormalities in articulation that may occur?

tremors
prolonged articulatory postures on stop consonants
After a block there is a rapid increase in articulatory rate

True or false: Research shows that individuals who stutter have a lower IQ that people who do not.

false

What are three personality traits that may exist in a person who stutters?

unwilling to express anger openly
avoid situations that require a lot of talking
restrict social relationships
depression related to coping with stuttering

What are 3 questions to ask the client during the interview? 3 for the parent?

expectations?
prior treatment?
family history of stuttering
onset of stuttering?
educational or occupational impacts?
What does the client think the problem is?

_____% of SLPs express needing direction during the development and implementation of stuttering assessment and treatment programs.

60%

Explain the importance of a speech sample.

focus on variables that affect dysfluency rate (e.g., variability, audience, situations, avoidance)

How long should a speech sample be?

10-20 minutes

Explain the adaptation task

read 5 times in succession without pausing for too long between reading the passage

True or false: A client will be more fluent when they read the passage the 5th time than they were the 1st time that they readit.

true

What should be included during diagnostics (look at pg 24 of class notes)?

type and frequency of disfluencies
# of words

% disfluency rate (over 5% recommend therapy)
words per minute

Equation for percent of syllables stuttered

(# of stuttered syllables/# of total syllables)*100

Equation for percent of words stuttered

(# of stuttered words/# of total words)*100

What are 2 standardized tests that you can use for a child that is suspected of stuttering?

SSI
TOCS

What is the criteria for a diagnosis of stuttering?

5% disfluency rate on same
3% disfluency for certain disfluencies (word, sound, broken words, part-word)
duration of disfluency

Speech sample with _______% disfluent.

5%

_________% disfluency rate of specific types of disfluencies.

3%

The average person who stutters is ______% disfluent.

10%

The S-Scale (Erickson, 1969)

provides info about the attitudes towards interpersonal communication of people who have fluency disorders

Three Wish Task (Silverman, 1970
& what can it tell the clinician

If a genie came and said that they would grant 3 wishes, what would you wish for?
determines if young children are aware of and concerned about their speech, without inadvertantly suggesting to them that they should be concerned about it
**importance to them

Miracle Task

If you woke up tomorrow morning and no longer stuttered, when would you notice?

Speech Locus of Control

task intended to determine whether a person tends to believe in an internal or external locus of control for speech

Communication Attitude Test

a 35 item questionnaire designed to assess the speech-associated disorders

SSI

standardized test to evaluate # of disfluencies in three contexts (out of clinic, in clinic, reading(optional))

Blood’s Analysis

% of words stuttered
monologue,reading, conversation in the clinic, conversation out of clinic, telephone
Not widely used anymore
Takes into consideration nonstuttering and stuttering-like disfluences

How can a fluency specialist be contacted?

look online

What are dysrhythmic phonations?

prolongations of sounds, silent prolongations (1/2 a second)
syllable breaks

What are non stuttering-like disfluencies?

these are disfluencies that occur in everyone's speech & are considered normal

Duration for stuttering diagnosis: Prolongation? Repetition?

prolongations: more than one second
repetition: more than 2 repeated units

Onset characteristics

age of 4
some people experience a stuttering on their first word attempt
some experience fluency prior to onset of stuttering
gradual