Rapid Treatment of a Twenty-Two-Year Stammering Problem by Slow Speech Training

Abstract

Abstract The behavioral literature on the modification of stammering suggests that the shaping of slow speech may be the critical ingredient of successful intervention. The most common treatments have used a variety of external stimuli for modification of stammering such as delayed auditory feedback and metronome conditioning. Meyer and associates recently reported on the use of slow speech training without dependence on an external stimulus in combination with anxiety management. A case report is provided which indicates that a brief program of slow speech training without dependence on an external stimulus and without anxiety management was highly successful in modifying a long-term stammering problem. The relationship of anxiety to stammering is discussed and the need for further investigation of the presented treatment approach and clinical hypotheses is emphasized.