Developmental stuttering is a multifactorial speech disorder that emerges during early childhood and can persist into adulthood, affecting communication, social participation, and quality of life. Recent research has increasingly focused on the role of executive functions (EFs)—including working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility—in the onset and persistence of stuttering. This scoping review systematically maps the existing literature on EFs in monolingual individuals who stutter across the lifespan, synthesizing findings from 89 studies published between 1993 and 2024. Studies were identified through comprehensive searches of major databases and screened according to PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The review highlights methodological diversity, participant characteristics, and thematic trends in the assessment of EFs using behavioral tasks and parent-report measures. While findings are often inconsistent, a substantial body of evidence suggests that people who stutter may demonstrate diminished performance in one or more EF domains, particularly working memory and cognitive flexibility. Notably, only a few studies have examined all three core EF components simultaneously, and intervention studies remain limited. The review identifies key gaps in the literature, including the need for studies that could provide a longitudinal and comprehensive insight of all components of EFs within homogeneous populations, as well as further EF-based intervention research in stuttering. These insights underscore the potential of EF-focused approaches to enhance stuttering assessment and treatment.
Self-reported word-finding difficulties are common in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). A lack of suitable methods for assessing these sometimes-subtle word-finding difficulties in PwMS has been highlighted. The aim of this study was to investigate how word-finding difficulties can be detected and how they manifest themselves in connected speech in PwMS compared to non-brain-damaged (NBD) controls.Twenty-seven PwMS with self-reported anomia and 23 NBD controls performed a video-retelling task which was evaluated by (i) counting the number and types of indicators of word-finding difficulties, (ii) main-concept analysis (MCA), and (iii) correct-information-unit (CIU) analysis. Additionally, correlations between word-finding ability in connected speech, picture-naming ability, verbal fluency and demographic and disease-related factors were explored.Content analysis of connected speech proved to be successful in confirming self-perceived difficulties. In line with their own perceptions, word-finding difficulties were significantly more frequent in the MS group than in the NBD group (U = 144, p < .001). The overall distribution of WFD types differed significantly between groups, χ²(13) = 76.21, p < .001. In particular, the MS group had significantly more pauses and lower speech rate (U = 89, p < .001). In the MS group, a high frequency of indicators of word-finding difficulties was related to low MCA and CIU scores and to a low score on a phonemic verbal-fluency test, but no correlations were found between word-finding difficulties on the one hand and age, years of education, or disease-related factors such as MS type, disease duration, or Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score on the other.
Objective Multisyllabic word production is considered a sensitive indicator of phonological development and disorder, yet data from Persian‑speaking children remain limited. This study aimed to provide quantitative and qualitative evidence on multisyllabic word production in Persian‑speaking children with typical development (TD) and those with Speech Sound Disorder showing consistent error patterns (SSD-CEP). Method Eighty monolingual Persian‑speaking children (40 TD, 40 SSD) aged 4;0–7;0 years participated. Speech samples were elicited using the Multisyllabic Words Test. Quantitative measures included proportion of consonants correct‑revised (PCC‑R), proportion of whole‑word correctness (PWC), and proportion of whole‑word proximity (PWP). Qualitative analyses examined phonological error patterns, including word‑structure errors and substitution processes. Age‑group comparisons and correlational analyses were conducted to examine developmental trends within and between groups. Results Children with TD tended to show significant age‑related increases in PCC‑R, PWC, and PWP, with steady improvements across age groups (p < .001). Children with SSD-CEP consistently performed lower across all measures in this sample. In TD children, associations among PCC‑R, PWP, and PWC strengthened with age and were uniformly strong by ages 5;0 and 6;0. In contrast, children with SSD-CEP showed very strong correlations at younger ages, particularly between PCC‑R and whole‑word measures, which weakened by age six. Major phonological error patterns in multisyllabic word production appeared to be largely resolved by 4;0 in TD children, whereas fronting, final consonant deletion, backing, and cluster reduction persisted in the SSD group. Conclusion Despite language‑specific phonological characteristics, multisyllabic word accuracy and error persistence patterns in Persian‑speaking children align with cross‑linguistic findings, providing preliminary support for the potential clinical utility of multisyllabic word measures for assessment and profiling of phonological disorders.
Background The comprehension and production abilities of individuals with aphasia are evaluated by means of linguistic tests normed to identify patterns of strengths and difficulties. There are no culturally relevant standardised tests in Ghana to evaluate language in Akan-speaking individuals with aphasia. Aim The aim of this study was to develop and pilot a novel culturally and linguistically relevant Akan Aphasia Language Tasks (AALT) to determine their feasibility for conducting receptive and expressive language assessments for aphasia research purposes in Akan. Method AALT was designed and administered to 15 individuals with varying profiles of aphasia (nine fluent and six non-fluent) and 15 non-brain-damaged controls matched on age and sex. The tasks comprised single word comprehension for verbs, single word comprehension for nouns, sentence comprehension, object naming and action naming tasks in Akan. Stimuli were images designed using generative AI. Results All tasks showed significant differences between individuals with aphasia and non-brain-damaged controls. However, group comparisons based on aphasia type (fluent and non-fluent), showed no significant differences in performance on the noun comprehension, verb comprehension, sentence comprehension and object naming. The only statistically significant difference was on the action naming task. Overall, individuals with aphasia demonstrated greater difficulty in their comprehension of single word verbs than nouns, and comprehension of sentences. In the production tasks, individuals with non-fluent aphasia demonstrated greater difficulty in naming actions than objects. Conclusion This study successfully piloted culturally and linguistically relevant aphasia assessment tasks for Akan research. The tasks proved feasible and culturally appropriate for receptive and expressive aphasia language assessment. The pilot study represents a foundational step in the development of aphasia assessments in the Akan context. The availability of this newly developed assessment tasks in Akan bridges the gap in the lack of culturally and linguistically relevant tools in Akan research for the Akan-speaking population.
BACKGROUND:Stuttering is a complex communication difference with significant psychological and social consequences. Negative attitudes toward people who stutter (PWS) often stem from misconceptions and limited awareness. This study aimed to investigate the attitudes of elementary school teachers toward stuttering and examine demographic factors associated with these attitudes using the Persian version of the Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering (POSHA-S) in elementary school teachers in Zahedan, Iran. METHODS:This cross-sectional study included 150 randomly selected teachers who completed the POSHA-S. Their Overall Stuttering Score (OSS), Beliefs, and Self-Reactions subscores were compared with the international POSHA-S database using percentile benchmarking. Associations between subscores and demographic variables (age, gender, education level, marital status, and parental status) were analyzed using General Linear Modeling. RESULTS:The mean OSS was 14 (24th percentile) compared with 17 in the international POSHA-S database, indicating less favorable overall attitudes among teachers. Beliefs about PWS were less positive, particularly regarding etiology and personality, whereas Self-Reactions were moderately above average (58th percentile). In an exploratory analysis, a Gender × Marital Status interaction was significant predictor of Beliefs and OSS (p < .05), but not of Self-Reactions; no demographic predictors reached significance for this subscore. CONCLUSION:These findings reveal a discrepancy between teachers' relatively positive Self-Reactions and their less favorable Beliefs about PWS. The exploratory Gender × Marital Status interaction observed for both Beliefs and OSS should be interpreted cautiously and warrants replication in larger, more balanced samples. Culturally tailored teacher education programs may help address misconceptions about stuttering and promote more informed attitudes toward students who stutter in similar educational contexts.
