Disfluency Behavior of Elementary School Stutterers and Non-Stutterers: The Adaptation Effect

Abstract

A group of 184 elementary school children, 92 stutterers and 92 matched nonstutterers, performed a speaking task three times consecutively. Kindergarten and first grade children repeated a series of sentences, and the second through sixth grade children read a passage. Both the stutterers and the nonstutterers exhibited the adaptation effect. Both adapted proportionally to approximately the same degree. There was no tendency in either group for the degree of adaptation to vary as a function of grade level. Whether or not a child exhibited the adaptation effect appeared to be more closely related to how disfluent he was on his first performance of the task than to whether he had been labeled as a stutterer or a nonstutterer. Our results indictate that adaptation is not unique to stutterers, but is to be found also in normal speakers. Several implications are discussed.

Phonological neighborhood density in the picture naming of young children who stutter: Preliminary study

“…= 6.69). Similar indices of stuttering have been reported elsewhere (e.g., Yairi & Ambrose, 1992;Yairi & Lewis, 1984), with the specific definition of the "constituent members" or different disfluency types representative of stuttering also described elsewhere (Williams, Silverman, & Kools, 1968). …”

Behavioral inhibition and childhood stuttering

“…Given that the C-E model suggests that temperamental factors may exacerbate CWS’ speech disfluencies, a better understanding of the role of the temperamental characteristics in the development of stuttering might result from assessing how BI impacts the quantity of stuttered disfluencies within the group of CWS as well as CWNS. In the same vein, it would be interesting to investigate how BI impacts non-stuttered disfluencies (e.g., revisions) within CWS as well as CWNS, thus addressing the suggestion that there may be similar underlying mechanisms for stuttered and non-stuttered disfluencies (Johnson, 1959; Postma & Kolk, 1993; Williams, Silverman, & Kools, 1968). …”

Use of Diffuse Correlation Spectroscopy To Measure Brain Blood Flow Differences During Speaking and Nonspeaking Tasks for Fluent Speakers and Persons Who Stutter

“…The student was trained by the first author to recognize types of disfluency and secondary behaviors. The student was also given a standard definition of stuttering that included disfluency types suggested by Williams, Silverman, and Kools (1968). Disfluencies were defined as stuttering (part-word repetitions, disrhythmic phonationsprolongations, tense pauses) and non-stuttering (word repetitions, phrase repetitions, interjections, revisions) types (Johnson & Associates, 1959).…”