Differences between Students and Clinical Therapists in Speech-Language Pathologist Education

—Recognition Differences in Speech with Varying Speech Rates—

Abstract

In clinical practice, students majoring in speech-language-hearing therapy are most in need of communication skills. However, problems with student communication skills are often pointed out. In this study, students were classified into three groups based on a questionnaire that measures communication skills. Each group was asked to subjectively judge their "desirable attitude for asking questions of patients" by listening to the voice in an interview setting in which the speech rate was adjusted under five conditions. The results revealed that the student group with low other-evaluation and the student group with low self-evaluation had perceptions different from those of clinical therapists regarding the "desirable attitude toward patients" obtained from the speech rate of others. Some students showed difficulty in having an objective perspective on their own communication, and their discrepancies with clinical therapists in perception of communication may be due to differences in perception of their reaction to others.