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ERIC Number: EJ909087
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Oct
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1092-4388
EISSN: N/A
Attentional Regulation in Young Twins with Probable Stuttering, High Nonfluency, and Typical Fluency
Felsenfeld, Susan; van Beljsterveldt, Catharina Eugenie Maria; Boomsma, Dorret Irene
Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, v53 n5 p1147-1166 Oct 2010
Purpose: Using a sample of 20,445 Dutch twins, this study examined the relationship between speech fluency and attentional regulation in children. A secondary objective was to identify etiological overlap between nonfluency and poor attention using fluency-discordant twin pairs. Method: Three fluency groups were created at age 5 using a parent questionnaire: (a) probable stuttering (PS; N = 826; 4.0%), highly nonfluent (HNF; N = 547; 2.7%), and typically fluent (TF; N = 19,072; 93%). Multiple scales assessing attention, primarily self-regulation/inhibition, were obtained from both parents when children were ages 5 and 7 and from teachers when children were age 7. Results: When compared with the TF controls, both the PS and HNF children received higher (i.e., more problematic) scores on parental attention ratings at both ages (p less than 0.002). Effect sizes were moderate for both groups. Teacher and parent ratings were generally comparable. The discordant co-twin analyses suggested that nonfluency and attention were influenced by potentially overlapping genetic and shared environmental factors. Conclusions: The liability to express both high nonfluency and problems with self-regulation/inhibition may arise from a common set of pathogenic mechanisms. This supports emerging models of stuttering, which propose that poor fluency may be part of a broader network of impaired self-regulatory processes.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). 10801 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. Tel: 800-638-8255; Fax: 301-571-0457; e-mail: subscribe@asha.org; Web site: http://jslhr.asha.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Netherlands
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A