The Role of Effortful Control in Stuttering Severity in Children: Replication Study

Background In 2014, Kraft et al. assessed the temperament, home environment, and significant life events of 69 North American children who stutter to examine the combined and compounded effects of these individualized factors on mediating overt stuttering severity. The temperament domain of effortful control was singularly found to be significantly predictive of stuttering severity. Purpose Because of the clinical significance of the initial study's findings, a replication study with a different, larger cohort of children who stutter was warranted to validate the reported outcomes. Method The current study assesses 98 children who stutter, ages 2;4 to 12;6 (years; months, M = 6;7), recruited from Perth, Australia. Results The results support the previous findings of Kraft, Ambrose, and Chon (2014) , with effortful control remaining the sole significant contributor to variability in stuttering severity, as rated by both parents and clinicians. Conclusion These cumulative and consistent outcomes support the need to develop targeted intervention strategies that specifically strengthen aspects of effortful control as a means to support positive therapeutic change in children who stutter.