Attention, Speech-Language Dissociations, and Stuttering Chronicity

Abstract

Summary The purpose of this study was to investigate the singular and joint contributions of speech-language dissociations and attention (i.e., distractibility and attention span) to stuttering chronicity. Method Participants, aged 3;0–4;11 (years;months) at an initial visit, were classified as persisting ( n = 10; 9 boys), recovered ( n = 32; 23 boys), and nonstuttering ( n = 28; 19 boys) based on multiple speech and language evaluations spread across 2 years. The evaluations included assessments of articulation, receptive and expressive vocabulary, and omnibus receptive and expressive language. These measures were used to identify speech-language dissociations using a correlation-based statistical approach. Attentional characteristics, which included measures of distractibility and attention span, were based on parent report. Analyses investigated between-group differences related to dissociations and attentional characteristics as well as the relation between these indices. Results There were no significant between-group differences for the persisting and recovered groups on measures of speech-language dissociations; however, the recovered group was found to exhibit less optimal attention span than the persisting group. In addition, children with dissociations exhibited less optimal distractibility and attention spans at the final time point than children without dissociations. Conclusions Present results indicate that attention is related to both stuttering chronicity and the presence of speech-language dissociations; however, they do not support the notion that dissociations are associated with stuttering persistence. These results provide novel insights into the complex nature of the association between developmental stuttering, speech-language dissociations, and attention.