Yaruss Daily Questions
Jan. 9: Who Are We and Why Are We Here?
Qualities of a Speech-Language Pathologist
What is the role of the SLP in helping people who stutter?
What skills should SLPs possess if they are to successfully treat stuttering?
What does it take to be a good stuttering clinician?
Becoming Comfortable with Stuttering
Why is it important for the SLP to become comfortable with stuttering?
How should we do this?
Jan. 23: Who Are People Who Stutter and What Do They Want From Us?
Basic Definitions and Demographics
What is a person who stutters? What is a stutterer?
What are the incidence and prevalence of stuttering in the population?
What is the gender ratio of stuttering in children? In Adults?
The Role of Support Groups
What are the major support groups for people who stutter in the U.S.?
What other organizations are available for helping people who stutter?
How can clinicians help their clients participate in both support groups and treatment?
Jan. 30: What Is Stuttering?
Basic Definitions of Fluency and Fluency Disorders
What are fluency, disfluency, dysfluency, nonfluency, and stuttering?
What are cluttering, neurogenic stuttering, and psychogenic stuttering and how do they differ from developmental stuttering?
Understanding Types of Disfluencies
What are the various types of disfluencies people can produce?
Why are some disfluencies characterized as normal and others characterized as stuttered?
February 6: Why Do People Stutter?
Theoretical Background
What are two older theories about stuttering (early 1900s) that we no longer believe to be true?
What is the theory of cerebral dominance? How does it relate to current understandings of stuttering?
What is the diagnosogenic theory? How does it relate to our current understanding of stuttering?
What role does learning theory play in our current understanding of stuttering?
Why are there so many theories about the cause of stuttering and why do theories change over time?
Current Theories
How do current theories differ from the majority of historical theories?
What factors are typically involved in multifactorial theories about stuttering?
What is the demands and capacities model and what does it tell us about stuttering?
What does research tell us about linguistic, motoric, and temperamental aspects of stuttering?
February 13: When Do People Stutter?
Factors that increase the likelihood of stuttering
What linguistic, paralinguistic, and situational factors increase the likelihood that certain words and utterances will contain speech disfluencies?
Factors that decrease the likelihood of stuttering
What are delayed auditory feedback and frequency altered feedback?
What other factors introduce “artificial” fluency and why do these factors affect people’s speech?
What role can these factors play in the treatment of stuttering?
The Development of Stuttering
How does stuttering develop in young children?
What risk factors contribute to the development and maintenance of stuttering?
February 20: How Do We Evaluate Stuttering in General?
Evaluating individuals Who Stutter
What is the purpose of the diagnostic evaluation…for preschoolers? …for school-age children? …for adolescents? …for adults?
What is the difference btwn measuring stuttering events and measuring the stuttering disorder?
Measuring Stuttering Events and Stuttering Severity
What are some basic measures of stuttering events?
What are some basic measures of the stuttering disorder?
Why is it important to examine stuttering events in a variety of different speaking situations?
What are some strengths and weaknesses of the Stuttering Severity Instrument (Riley, 1994)?
Measuring the Stuttering Disorder
What factors would you consider if you wished to measure the entire stuttering disorder?
February 27: How Do We Treat Adults Who Stutter?
Treating Adults Who Stutter
What are the overall goals of treatment for adults who stutter?
What factors might lead an adult client to come to therapy?
What are the basic approaches to stuttering treatment for adults who stutter?
Modifying Speech
What are the basic principles upon which speech modification strategies are based?
What are the basic treatment procedures involved in speech modification?
What data are there to indicate the efficacy of this approach?
Modifying Stuttering
What are the basic principles upon which stuttering modification strategies are based?
What are the basic treatment procedures involved in stuttering modification?
What data are there to indicate the efficacy of this approach?
Designing Individualized Treatment Plans
How do we combine the “speech modification” and “stuttering modification” treatment approaches for individual clients?
How do we prepare clients to deal with relapse?
March 13: How Do We Evaluate Young Children Who Stutter?
A complete diagnostic evaluation
What are the components of a complete diagnostic evaluation for a preschool child who stutters and why are these components included?
How do these components relate to the risk factors for developing stuttering?
What are some primary questions you should ask parents during an interview and why should these questions be asked?
Making Treatment Recommendations
How do you determine which children need treatment and how do you know if you made the “right” decision?
Why is there such controversy about recommending treatment for preschoolers who stuttering and what can you do to address this controversy?
March 20: How Do We Treat Preschool Children who Stutter?
Planning Treatment for Preschoolers
What is the ultimate goal of treatment for preschool children who stutter?
What types of treatment options are available for preschool children who stutter?
“Indirect” treatment and Parent Counseling
What are the primary strategies used in “indirect” therapy for preschool children who stutter?
What specific aspects of the environment do we try to modify in indirect treatment? Why?
What evidence is there that these strategies are effective?
Talking with Young Children About Stuttering
What is the goal of talking with preschool children about stuttering?
How do you know when is it appropriate to talk to preschool children about stuttering?
March 27: How Do We Treat Preschool Children who Stutter (cont.)?
“Direct” treatment and Parent Training
What are the primary strategies used in “direct” therapy for preschool children who stutter?
What specific aspects of the child’s speech do we try to modify in direct treatment? Why?
What evidence is there that these strategies are effective?
The Lidcombe Program for treating childhood stuttering
On what theoretical principles is the Lidcombe approach based?
How do you administer this type treatment?
What evidence is there in support of this approach?
April 3: How Do We Evaluate and Treat School-Age Children Who Stutter?
Evaluating School-Age Children Who Stutter
What are the goals of the diagnostic evaluation for school-age children who stutter?
What are the basic procedures of the diagnostic evaluation for school-age children who stutter?
How can you assess the communication attitudes of school-age children who stutters?
What information helps you determine whether a child should be enrolled in treatment?
Treating School-Age Children Who Stutter
What are the goals of treatment for school-age children who stutter?
What are basic procedures for helping school-age children who stutter improve their fluency?
What are basic procedures for helping school-age children who stutter change their stuttering?
What are basic procedures for helping school-age children who stutter improve their communication attitudes?
How are these techniques related to the treatment for adults who stutter?
April 10: How Do We Evaluate and Treat School-Age Children Who Stutter
Some Special Issues for School-Age Children
What do you do if a child is fluent in the therapy room but not in the classroom?
How can school-age children who stutter benefit from support groups?
What do you do if a child is not motivated to participate in treatment?
What do you do if the child is reacting experiencing bullying and teasing about stuttering?
What do you do if the child has strongly negative emotional reactions to teasing?
What do you do if your child is grouped with other children who do not stutter?
Special Issues in the Schools
What are some potential roadblocks to treating school-age children who stutter in the school setting and how do you overcome these roadblocks?
How do you work with the family when you’re in a school setting?
What should you do if you don’t have any access to the family during treatment?
What should you do if the family has different goals for treatment than you or the child?
