Speech Processing Tasks for Stuttering

No longer recruiting at 1 trial location

Overseen By Emily Garnett, PhD

Age: Any Age

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: University of Michigan

Disqualifiers: Stuttering history, Major illness, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Approved in 1 Jurisdiction This treatment is already approved in other countries

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 1

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial aims to better understand how people who stutter process and produce speech. Participants will complete various computer and speech-based tasks over one or two visits. The trial includes adults and children who either stutter or do not. It suits those who currently stutter, use English as their primary language, and have not recently undergone speech therapy or experienced major medical conditions. As an unphased study, this trial offers participants the opportunity to contribute to groundbreaking research on stuttering.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What prior data suggests that these speech and non-speech tasks are safe for participants?

Research has shown that activities involving speech and non-speech tasks for stuttering are generally safe. In previous studies, participants handled these activities without major problems. For instance, studies on speech therapy apps and fluency treatments found no significant negative effects. This suggests that speech tasks, like those in the trial, are well-tolerated by participants. Although this trial does not involve a medical treatment, similar studies have demonstrated a strong safety record for these tasks. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about the Speech Processing Tasks for Stuttering trial because it explores innovative ways to understand and potentially improve stuttering. Unlike traditional speech therapy, which often focuses on repetitive practice and fluency techniques, this trial investigates the effects of specific speech and non-speech tasks on stuttering. By analyzing how these tasks impact speech processing, the trial could uncover new insights into the underlying mechanisms of stuttering. This knowledge might lead to more targeted and effective interventions in the future, offering hope for more personalized and efficient treatment options.

What evidence suggests that these speech and non-speech tasks are effective for understanding stuttering?

Research shows that speech therapy can help people who stutter by teaching smoother speaking techniques. In this trial, participants will engage in both speech and non-speech tasks. One study found that combining fluency techniques with acceptance-based methods improved speech in adults who stutter. Another study found that using speech therapy apps on digital devices reduced stuttering and increased speaking confidence. Traditional speech therapy focuses on building skills to reduce stuttering and enhance communication. Although information on non-speech tasks is limited, these methods are part of ongoing efforts to better understand and treat stuttering. ^{1 3 4 6 7}

Who Is on the Research Team?

Emily Garnett, PhD

Principal Investigator

University of Michigan

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This trial is for adults aged 18-65 and children aged 6-17, both groups with and without stuttering. Participants must speak English as their primary language and have normal speech, hearing, cognition (except for stuttering). Those who do not stutter should not have a personal or family history of it. Excluded are individuals with major medical/psychiatric illnesses or recent speech therapy.

Inclusion Criteria

I am a child aged 6 to 17 years who stutters.

I am a child who currently stutters.

My child stutters but has normal speech, hearing, and cognitive abilities.

Exclusion Criteria

Children who do not stutter will be excluded if they have a personal or family history of stuttering.

I am an adult who stutters without major medical or psychiatric conditions.

My child stutters and has delays in speaking or moving.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

1-2 weeks

Speech Processing Tasks

Participants complete a variety of computer and speech-based tasks to measure phase locking value (PLV) during speech and non-speech tasks

Up to 4 hours per session

1-2 visits (in-person)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for any immediate effects or feedback after task completion

1 week

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Speech and non-speech tasks

Trial Overview The study aims to understand how people with stuttering process and produce speech by having participants complete computer-based tasks and speaking exercises during up to two visits.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Healthy Children Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants will have 1 visit.

Group II: Healthy Adults Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants will have 2 visits.

Group III: Children who Stutter Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants will have 1 visit.

Group IV: Adults who stutter (AWS) Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants will have 2 visits.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

University of Michigan

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1,891

Recruited

6,458,000+

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Collaborator

Trials

377

Recruited

190,000+

Published Research Related to This Trial

After fluency shaping therapy, nine male adults with persistent developmental stuttering showed increased brain activation in left-hemispheric speech and language areas, indicating a positive change in brain function related to speech.

The therapy appears to reorganize neuronal communication in the brain, particularly near areas of white matter abnormalities, suggesting that it may help restore normal brain circuitry rather than just compensating for the dysfunction.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Cortical plasticity associated with stuttering therapy. Neumann, K., Preibisch, C., Euler, HA., et al.[2013]

This study is testing the effectiveness of combining delayed auditory feedback (DAF) with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in adults who stutter, aiming to improve speech fluency and overall quality of life.

The trial is designed as a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled study with 30 participants, assessing changes in stuttering severity before, immediately after, and 6 weeks post-intervention.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Delayed Auditory Feedback and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Treatment for the Enhancement of Speech Fluency in Adults Who Stutter: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. Moein, N., Mohamadi, R., Rostami, R., et al.[2020]

In a clinical trial with 30 children, attention training using the NEurocognitive Joyful Attentive Training Intervention (NEJATI) significantly improved executive function and reduced stuttering severity after 12 sessions.

The study suggests that attention training can be an effective non-linguistic approach to rehabilitating developmental stuttering, highlighting its potential as a valuable therapy option.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Attention training in rehabilitation of children with developmental stuttering. Nejati, V., Pouretemad, HR., Bahrami, H.[2013]

An operant treatment for early stuttering, where parents provide verbal feedback during everyday conversations, has shown promise in helping preschool children achieve long-term control of their stuttering without relapse.

This approach is cost-effective and avoids the unnatural speech patterns often associated with traditional stuttering treatments for adults, making it a more practical solution for young children.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

An operant intervention for early stuttering. The development of the Lidcombe program. Onslow, M., Menzies, RG., Packman, A.[2019]

Traditional evaluations of stuttering treatment mainly focus on speech disfluencies, but this study emphasizes the need to assess broader impacts, including emotional and cognitive reactions to stuttering.

The research aims to develop reliable measurement tools to evaluate various treatment outcomes, including the effects of stuttering on communication abilities and overall quality of life, which have been underrepresented in past studies.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluating treatment outcomes for adults who stutter. Yaruss, JS.[2019]

Three core measures of treatment outcome for stuttering—stuttering rate, speech rate, and speech naturalness—are recommended for clinicians based on clinical trial data, emphasizing the need for direct speech measures in practice.

Severity ratings of stuttering are highlighted as valuable tools for clinicians, allowing for flexible and tailored outcome measurements that can enhance the assessment of treatment effectiveness in various settings.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Connecting stuttering management and measurement: I. Core speech measures of clinical process and outcome. Shenker, RC.[2016]

Tele-rehabilitation using videoconferencing significantly improved speech and language skills in stuttering patients, with a mean goal attainment scaling (GAS) score of 53.08, indicating positive treatment outcomes.

Out of 112 health goals assessed, patients achieved or exceeded expectations in 78 goals, demonstrating that remote speech therapy can effectively enhance access to care and improve treatment follow-up for stuttering.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Determining the effect of tele-rehabilitation on patients with stutter using the goal attainment scaling (GAS). Eslami Jahromi, M., Ahmadian, L.[2021]

The Stuttering Problem Profile is a paper and pencil task designed to gather qualitative data that can help identify therapy goals for individuals who stutter.

This tool has been effectively used in various ways to enhance the understanding of stuttering issues, aiding in the development of personalized therapy approaches.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The stuttering problem profile: a task that assists both client and clinician in defining therapy goals. Silverman, FH.[2019]

Individuals who stutter show positive outcomes from treatment provided by speech-language pathologists, indicating that professional intervention is beneficial.

While research has focused on reducing stuttering frequency and behavior, more studies are needed to understand how treatment impacts daily life activities for those who stutter and their families.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Treatment efficacy: stuttering. Conture, EG.[2019]

In a study involving 17 people who stutter, performing a storytelling task while simultaneously completing a computer task led to increased stuttering frequency, suggesting that dual tasking can effectively simulate real-world challenges during speech therapy.

The development of the Dual Task and Stuttering Device (DAS-D) was positively received by three participants in a proof of concept study, indicating its potential as a useful tool in clinical settings for enhancing treatment outcomes.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Dual tasking and stuttering: from the laboratory to the clinic. Metten, C., Bosshardt, HG., Jones, M., et al.[2011]

A feasibility study involving 31 adults who stutter showed that a computerized attention training intervention for social anxiety disorder was acceptable, with 25 participants completing all data collection points.

The study successfully demonstrated a viable recruitment strategy and gathered positive feedback on the intervention, indicating that modifications are needed before conducting a larger definitive trial.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Cognitive bias modification for social anxiety in adults who stutter: a feasibility study of a randomised controlled trial. McAllister, J., Gascoine, S., Carroll, A., et al.[2021]

Citations

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Stuttering, Cluttering, and Fluency Stuttering is an interruption in the flow of speaking due to disfluencies. It is the most common fluency disorder and can affect the rate and rhythm of speech.

2. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12118585/

Reimagining stuttering therapy and outcomes through an ... The purpose of this paper is to summarize a panel discussion at the 2024 World Stuttering and Cluttering Organization Congress that aimed to explore and reflect

3. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0094730X21000310

Evaluation of an integrated fluency and Acceptance and ... In 2012, Beilby and colleagues evaluated an integrated fluency and ACT group treatment for adults who stutter, and results demonstrated successful increased ...

4. arxiv.org arxiv.org/html/2503.02743v1

Evaluating a Digital Speech Therapy App for Stuttering This pilot validation study evaluates the effectiveness of Eloquent in reducing stuttering severity and enhancing speaking confidence.

5. aafp.org aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2019/1101/p556.html

Stuttering: Understanding and Treating a Common Disability In patients with persistent stuttering, speech therapy focuses on developing effective compensatory techniques and eliminating ineffective ...

6. asha.org asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/fluency-disorders/?srsltid=AfmBOopCenaxFLO__-I1yc4Q_xnkezaL96rZo1y_qe0SYRzEUvCQsqr9

Stuttering, Cluttering, and Fluency Stuttering is an interruption in the flow of speaking due to disfluencies. It is the most common fluency disorder and can affect the rate and rhythm of speech.

7. tandfonline.com tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17549507.2024.2371869

Long-term evaluation of psychosocial impact and stuttering ... Therapy effects on the severity of stuttering and psychosocial impact were stable over the follow-up period of more than 10 years. Moreover, ...