A New Approach to the Classification and Measurement of Stuttering

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Abstract
A quantitative, multidimensional approach to clinical diagnosis and management of stuttering is proposed. This approach would involve (1) the measurement of stuttering behavior under a number of contrived social conditions relevant to the given population of stutterers; (2) a method of measurement which provides separate quantitative estimates of the qualitative aspects of the stuttering pattern, for example, total frequency of disfluencies as well as incidence of hard blocking; (3) an analysis of the quantitative relationship between the social context and the qualitative pattern of stuttering and its severity; (4) a diagnostic formulation of “stutterogenic” situations for a given individual and of the stability and severity of the stuttering pattern across the total range of situations; and (5) a management plan geared to these diagnostic considerations. The approach is illustrated, using the findings of an experimental study primarily designed to test the author’s recently postulated bioadaptive theory of stuttering. Further research is needed to refine the proposed diagnostic approach and to establish its clinical validity and usefulness.

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