Anxiety in Children and Young Adolescents who Stutter

Abstract

The present study was designed to investigate the question of whether children who stutter have raised levels of state and trait anxiety in comparison to children who do not stutter. If anxiety levels are raised, this would have implications for current theories of the cause of stuttering as well as for treatment in this age group. Ninety-six children aged 9–14 years who stuttered were compared with 104 children who did not stutter and who were similar in age and education levels. The experimental group were comprehensively diagnosed for stuttering and assessed for their severity by measuring stuttering frequency and speech rate in a five minute clinic conversation. Both groups completed the Spielberger STAIC anxiety questionnaire. Based on STAIC scores, those in the stuttering group were no more anxious than the controls. There were also no significant associations between severity of stuttering, age or sex, and levels of anxiety. Implications for the early management of stuttering are discussed.