An Investigation Of Physiological Measures In Relation To The Moment Of Stuttering In A Group Of Adult Males

Author : Charn Ying Nang
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 328 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (93 download)

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Download or read book Cause Or Consequence written by Charn Ying Nang and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: [Truncated abstract] Current research indicates that the onset, recovery and persistence of stuttering stem from a number of complex factors and their interaction with speech motor control processes. The use of non-speech and quasi-speech tasks have helped to increase the understanding of speech production processes involved with stuttering, however results from such studies are somewhat inconsistent and do not reflect natural speaking contexts. It is often difficult to ascertain the direction of causality of findings. The aims of the research reported in this thesis were as follows: Define speech and language fluency profiles for individuals at different stages of stuttering. Compare speech and language fluency profiles for children with and without a family history of stuttering. Determine whether the observed changes in speech and language fluency profiles associated with stuttering are a cause or consequence of stuttering. Speech production measures were gathered through natural and age-appropriate speaking contexts from three age groups to capture different stages of stuttering. The three age groups were of young children (longitudinal design), school-aged children, and adults. To investigate familial history as a risk factor for the onset of stuttering, young children with and without positive family history were investigated over a period of nine months with the first data session being prior to any stuttering onset. During the study some children were diagnosed with stuttering. This allowed for further investigation of the relevant risk factors associated with the onset of stuttering, and speech production development associated with and without stuttering. To explore the way in which speech motor control and linguistic planning processes interact, the set of collected speech measures targeted both processes. Together, the measures reflect the multidimensional aspect of fluency and dynamic processes of speech production. A novel approach for the investigation of pauses in speech was adopted (Kirsner, Dunn, & Hird, 2003) in conjunction with common measures of speech and language production (Performance Deviations: PD, Brookshire & Nicholas, 1995; Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts: SALT, Miller, 2008; Correct Information Unit: CIU, Nicholas & Brookshire, 1993). The impact of stuttered disfluencies on speech production ability of people who stutter was investigated by comparing speech samples containing stuttered disfluencies with perceptually fluent samples. The relationship between stuttered disfluencies and the use of fluency techniques and how they relate to speech production measures for adults who stutter were explored. The first study of young children investigated the onset and developmental aspects of early stuttering across four data sessions. No group differences were found for speech production measures for children with (n = 9) and children without a family history of stuttering (n = 9). Of the typically developing children (n = 18) who participated, five children started stuttering. Four children had a positive family history of stuttering. The likelihood of stuttering onset based on family history was not significant. Syllables Spoken per Second was found to be a significant predictor for stuttering onset but this result could also be explained by group differences in age...