Articulation Rate of People Who Do and Who Do Not Stutter: Comparison between Oral Reading and Speech Shadowing

Abstract

The present study investigated whether the articulation ability and speech rate control of people who stutter (PWS) were different from people who do not stutter (PWNS). Twenty PWS and 20 PWNS performed oral reading and speech shadowing. Speech / articulation rates, the number and duration of pauses were analyzed. PWS showed slower articulation rate and with more pauses than PWNS during oral reading, but not during speech shadowing. This suggests that PWS control speech differently under the two conditions. Furthermore, PWS showed a significantly negative correlation between articulation rate and number of pauses during oral reading.