An Approach to the Evaluation of Stuttering Therapy

Abstract

This paper describes a procedure for evaluating the outcome of treatment for stuttering therapy. The usefulness of the procedure will be illustrated in the assessment of a therapy program which the authors conducted. Three issues associated with treatment outcome evaluation are considered. First, repeated measures of frequency of stuttering and rate of speech are regarded as minimal requirements. Self-report questionnaires appear to provide additional relevant information. Second, it appears important to demonstrate, in treatment, that improvements in fluency are not simply “laboratory-bound.” Third, attention is drawn to the need for repeated posttreatment evaluation of speech behavior in general, and to the advantage of covert posttreatment assessment in particular.