Parents and therapists as allies in behavioral treatment of children's stuttering

The effectiveness of a joint therapist and parent intervention approach to children's stuttering was investigated with 18 children. Intervention entailed an intensive 1-week clinic in which children were trained in the stutter-free speech method developed by Shames and Florance (1980) and in which parents received instruction in reinforcement and negotiation procedures. Clinic training was followed by a home-based therapy program carried out by the parents in conjunction with continued school speech therapy. Multiple baseline analysis of speech dysfluencies in parent-child interactions demonstrated systematic reductions in stuttering concomitant with clinic treatment for 16 of the 18 children, and follow-up checks showed maintenance of treatment gains up to 6 months later. Observational and written measures collected at pretest, posttest, 2-month, and 6-month intervals showed significant postintervention reductions in stuttering during therapist-child interactions, improved performance on a standardized fluency test, and lower participant ratings of suttering severity. Parents displayed gains in knowledge of child management principles following training and improved perceptions of children's behavioral adjustment in follow-up. The findings support the efficacy of a multifaceted behavioral approach including parents with therapists in treatment of children's stuttering.