Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES): Documenting multiple outcomes in stuttering treatment
Section snippets
The need for broad-based treatment outcomes research in stuttering
Although many authors have shown that stuttering involves more than the behaviors that can be observed on the surface, there are very few studies demonstrating the effects of treatment on these “intrinsic” (Manning, 2001) factors (see reviews in Bloodstein, 1995, Cordes, 1998). The paucity of treatment outcomes research examining the totality of the stuttering disorder makes it difficult for clinicians to apply a strictly evidence-based approach to selecting treatment options (Quesal, Yaruss, &
A framework for describing broad-based treatment outcomes
Although much of the necessary research has not yet been completed, documenting the broad-based outcomes of treatment for a complex disorder such as stuttering is certainly not impossible. Indeed, most disorders (not just in speech–language pathology, but across the entire field of health and rehabilitation science) involve far more than just the symptoms that can easily be observed, counted, or classified. Accordingly, for the past several decades, there has been a growing emphasis on the need
Documenting multiple outcomes in stuttering treatment
In order to facilitate and support broad-based treatment outcomes research in stuttering, Yaruss, 1998a, Yaruss, 1998b, Yaruss, 2001 and Yaruss and Quesal, 2004a, Yaruss and Quesal, 2004b adapted the WHO's original ICIDH and current ICF frameworks to the study of stuttering. Fig. 1 presents a schematized version of the Yaruss and Quesal, 2004a, Yaruss and Quesal, 2004b adaptation, which depicts how the stuttering disorder can be viewed in terms of several interacting components:
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the presumed
Development and validation of the OASES
Development and validation of the OASES involved several stages, in which test items were individually evaluated, compared to one another, and refined. At the outset of the project, several key principles were defined in order to guide the development process and to ensure that the resulting product would provide a useful tool for supporting treatment outcomes research.
First, it was determined that the final instrument should consist of a pencil-and-paper measure that could be completed by
The Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering
The final version of the OASES consists of 100 items, each scored on a Likert scale ranging from 1 to 5. The instrument, which requires approximately 20 min to complete, is organized into four sections: (a) General Information, (b) Reactions to Stuttering, (c) Communication in Daily Situations, and (d) Quality of Life. Section I (General information) contains 20 items pertaining to speakers’ perceived fluency and speech naturalness, knowledge about stuttering and stuttering therapy, and overall
Discussion
The purpose of this paper has been to present a new instrument for measuring the overall impact of stuttering through assessment of multiple aspects of the disorder. The Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES) seeks to accomplish this goal by focusing on the speaker's experience of stuttering, as defined, in part, by the WHO's ICF framework. Specific factors that are addressed include: the speaker's self-perception of fluency, stuttering, and speech naturalness, as
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to their many colleagues who provided helpful feedback about the OASES and its predecessors and who were instrumental in supporting data collection and analysis. The authors also express their sincere appreciation for the assistance of the National Stuttering Association (NSA) Research Committee for distributing the OASES and for supporting our efforts over the years. Finally, the authors wish to gratefully acknowledge the efforts of Amy King, Michelle Schaffner, and
J. Scott Yaruss, PhD, CCC-SLP is a associate professor of communication science and disorders at the University of Pittsburgh; he is also Co-Director of Stuttering Center of Western Pennsylvania; and a Clinical Research Consultant, and a Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. He conducts NIH-funded research on childhood stuttering; teaches courses on stuttering and counseling skills to SLPs.
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J. Scott Yaruss, PhD, CCC-SLP is a associate professor of communication science and disorders at the University of Pittsburgh; he is also Co-Director of Stuttering Center of Western Pennsylvania; and a Clinical Research Consultant, and a Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. He conducts NIH-funded research on childhood stuttering; teaches courses on stuttering and counseling skills to SLPs.
Robert W. Quesal, PhD, CCC-SLP is a professor of communication sciences and disorders at the Western Illinois University. He is a board-recognized stuttering specialists and mentor. He conducts research on treatment outcomes measures and teaches courses on fluency disorders, speech science, anatomy, research designed, and voice disorders. He is a former member of the Division 4 Steering Committee.