Gordon W. Blood

Daniel, a fourth-grader on your caseload, has an expressive language disability that is interfering with his reading skills. He is quiet and well-mannered but does not actively participate in class...

Self-reported self-esteem, life orientation, satisfaction with life, and bullying were examined in relation to victimization experiences among 54 students who stuttered and 54 students who did not stutter. Those who stuttered reported greater, i.e., clinically significant, victimization (44.4%) than students who did not stutter (9.2%). Significant differences were found between means for self-esteem and life orientation, with students who stuttered reporting lower self-esteem and less optimistic life orientation than those who did not stutter. In both groups of students, high victimization scores had statistically significant negative correlations with optimistic life orientation, high self-esteem, and high satisfaction with life scores. Given the increased likelihood of students who stuttered being bullied, the negative relation of adjustment variables and bullying, and the potentially negative long-term effects of bullying, increased vigilance and early intervention are discussed.

Purpose: This study examined speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') perceptions of their (a) educational and clinical training in evaluating and treating written language disorders, (b) knowledge bases in this area, (c) sources of knowledge about written language disorders, (d) confidence levels, and (e) predictors of confidence in working with written language disorders. Method: A 6-part survey was developed and was mailed to 1,000 school-based SLPs. Results: SLPs ( n = 599) practicing in 47 states responded to the survey. A majority (60.3%) reported working with a child with a written language disorder either weekly or daily. SLPs described their educational and clinical training as “limited” in the evaluation and treatment of children with written language disorders. The average SLP stated feeling “somewhat confident” to evaluate and treat written language disorders, and 63.8% reported that they received most of their knowledge through “on-the job” training. Confidence was related to four variables: on-the-job training, general knowledge about written language disorders, attendance at conventions, and understanding of collaborative efforts. Conclusion: Our findings provide information about SLPs' training, knowledge, and confidence about written language beyond anecdotal reports and fill research gaps regarding SLPs' preservice and professional development needs. Predictors of confidence are discussed.

Models of interhemispheric interference have been proposed as an explanation for the cause and maintenance of stuttering. One component of this model is attentional functioning and allocation. This study examined attentional functioning in 19 children who stuttered and 19 children who did not stutter using a standardized, commercially available visual attention task. Results revealed no significant differences between the groups on total T-scores and on 6 of the 7 subscales of the visual attention task. Eleven (58%) children who stuttered earned significantly different scores on the risk-taking subscale, suggesting greater impulsivity than children who did not stutter. No significant relationships were found between stuttering severity, onset of stuttering, and performances on the visual attention task. Implications for models of stuttering and future research are discussed.