NCT05003583

Effects of Emotional Processes on Speech Motor Control in Early Childhood Stuttering.

The Influence of Contextual and Constitutional Emotional Processes on Speech Motor Control and Speech Motor Learning in Early Childhood Stuttering

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 68 (actual)
• Sponsor: Syracuse University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 3 Years – 10 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This study will compare speech variability between preschool-age children who stutter and typically fluent, age-matched peers. Differences in emotional reactivity, regulation and speech motor control have been implicated in stuttering development in children. This study seeks to understand further how these processes interact. Children will repeat a simple phrase after viewing age-appropriate images of either negative or neutral valence to assess speech motor control.

Detailed description

Stuttering is a developmental disorder that emerges in the preschool years as children are undergoing rapid development of their speech, language, and emotional regulation processes. This study aims to understand how speech motor control and emotional processes interact in young children who do and do not stutter. In Aim 1, the investigators will be observing how speech motor control and learning are affected by emotional (physiological) arousal. High arousal (e.g., stress) has been shown to disrupt highly skilled performances such as in sports and music performance (Yoshie et al., 2009). Parents of children who stutter often report that that exciting or stressful situations lead to increased stuttering in their children. There is little research, however, on how excitement or stress affects fluency in children. In Aim 2, the investigators will observe how behavioral inhibition plays a role in speech motor control and motor learning in the context of emotional processes. Behavioral inhibition is one aspect of a child's temperament. Temperament refers to self-regulation as well as emotional, motor, and attentional reactivity that differs among individuals. Children with high behavioral inhibition (BI) are hyper-vigilant and more sensitive to new stimuli and negative emotional states. Therefore, the purpose of Aim 2 is to see if children with high BI are more susceptible to contextual emotional processes, therefore affecting speech motor control and learning. Outcomes will be measured by calculating the variability in speech motor movements (STI). The two groups, children who stutter and age-matched peers who do not stutter, will be compared to see how speech motor control varies between groups and conditions.

Conditions

• Stuttering, Childhood

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Speaking after viewing pictures with negative and neutral valence	Speaking Condition 1: 10 age-appropriate pictures from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS; Lang, Bradley \& Cuthbert, 2005) will be shown to participants. These pictures are classified as high arousal, negative valence stimuli. Participants will be asked to repeat a simple phrase between picture presentations. Speaking Condition 2: A blank screen will be shown to participants in place of pictures. This condition is classified as low arousal, neutral valence. Participants will be asked to repeat a simple phrase between blank screen picture presentations.

Timeline

• Start date: 2021-05-21
• Primary completion: 2025-09-30
• Completion: 2025-09-30
• First posted: 2021-08-12
• Last updated: 2026-01-30

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States