'Stuttering. The Nature
... the Treatment'

18 & 19 April 2008
Antwerp, Belgium

Website European Symposium on Fluency Disorders
 
   

European Symposium on Fluency Disorders | Abstract René Stes

 

Short Biographical Sketch

René Stes has a Ba and Ma degree in SLT and is a former head lecturer of Lessius University College Antwerp where he taught a.o. courses on fluency, voice, and articulation disorders.

He has worked as a stutter therapist in a private practice and has published and lectured extensively on the topic of stuttering.

 

Lecture Title

The role of parents in an eclectic social cognitive stutter therapy: About psycho-education and other preventative techniques, mediation therapy, and 'stepped care’.

 

Abstract

Eclectic social cognitive behavioral stuttering therapy (ESCS) is a primary method for changing behavior (i.e. communication, speech, stuttering) through a) gaining insight in stuttering evoking situations and b) changing these behaviors through the use of learning principles. Positive or negative connotations to stuttering or stuttering evoking situations are individually determined and are learned through experiences or modeling of significant others (i.e. parents). Disfluent speech is evaluated in different ways by other persons, leading to different listener reactions, which can contribute to escape or avoidance behaviors and exacerbation/persistence of stuttering.
One of the most important differences between ESCS and other therapeutic approaches is the emphasis on psycho-education and the use of ‘stepped care’ for parents (and environment, society). Education and stuttering therapy are combined and adapted to the needs of the client based on assessment and the presence of factors leading to spontaneous recovery.
Parents (or significant others), especially in young children, need to be involved in stuttering therapy, not only during counseling or as co-therapists. They fulfill a crucial role and therapeutic intervention should also be tailored to their needs.
During this lecture we will focus on the importance of this approach and the new insights and possibilities in (secondary) stuttering prevention.

 

Learning outcomes

Participants will learn:

 

  1. about ESC stuttering therapy in children
  2. psycho-education of parents and ‘stepped care’
  3. individually tailored therapy / parental guidance

 

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