The investigation of the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Wright and Ayre Stuttering Self-Rating Profile (WASSP).

Abstract

Self-assessments for adults who stutter are recommended as a primary evaluation tool for including their views on stuttering. Evaluating adults who stutter with self-assessment scales is important. However, there is no tool in the Turkish literature that provides this measurement. To develop the Turkish version of The Wright and Ayre Stuttering Self-Rating Profile (WASSP) in order to analyse its validity and reliability, and investigate its applicability for Turkish-speaking individuals. The study included 120 adults who stutter (aged 18-54 years). All the participants completed The Wright and Ayre Stuttering Self-Rating Profile-Turkish version (WASSP-TR) and the SF-36 form. The reliability analysis involved the calculation of Cronbach's alphas for test-retest and the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient for internal consistency. The validity analysis, in turn, involved a confirmatory factor analysis for construct validity and testing correlations with the SF-36 for criterion validity. Internal consistency coefficients of the WASSP-TR were reported to be high (> 0.70). The correlations between the WASSP-TR and its subscales showed significant results (0.858-0.966) (p < 0.01). The correlation between the subscales of the WASSP-TR and the SF-36 was reported to be consistent (from -0.492 to 0.747). There was a positive correlation between stuttering severity groups and the WASSP-TR scores (p < 0.01). The WASSP-TR is a valid and reliable scale for Turkish-speaking adults who stutter. What this paper adds What is already known on the subject Self-assessment tools are recommended as a primary use when assessing adults who stutter. The WASSP is one of these measurement tools. However, the adaptation, validity and reliability study of the WASSP to Turkish has not been investigated. What this paper adds to existing knowledge This study shows that the Turkish version of the WASSP scale is valid and reliable and can be used with adults who stutter. Furthermore, the present adaptation study has been developed in order to evaluate social-emotional aspects of stuttering. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? A tool that includes evaluating the behaviour, cognition, affect and participation areas as well as the stuttering behaviours of adults who stutter was adapted. This tool is expected to be useful for comprehensive evaluation of adults who stutter in clinics, in research and for pre/post-therapy.