Behavior Therapy and Stuttering: A Review

Abstract

The application of behavior therapy to the treatment of stuttering is reviewed, with special attention to the measurement procedures, the treatment design, and the adequacy of the measures of outcome in each study. The reports are grouped by the predominant technique used. Masking and shadowing now seem limited in therapeutic promise, and negative practice and anxiety reduction have yet to be demonstrated to have powerful therapeutic potential. Rhythmic speech and prolonged speech appear to have greater therapeutic promise, although they rely on changing the pattern of speech—which in turn must be shaped toward normal speech. Operant conditioning procedures appear to be useful for effective therapy: those procedures in which the stimulus is contingent on the stuttering response seem simple and effective; those which focus on other behaviors are more complex but may be no less effective. In general, however, reports of behavior therapy for stuttering are disappointing in their absence of concern for appropriate and systematic evaluation of outcome.