Stuttering severity in adults: is there an association between self-report and clinical assessment?

Melo, Débora Camila Silva; Silva, Sallete Cristina; Araújo, Ana Luiza Ferreira; Santiago, Mariana Vieira Barbosa; Britto, Denise Brandão de Oliveira e

doi:10.1590/2317-6431-2025-3050pt

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Original Article • Audiol., Commun. Res. 31 • 2026 • https://doi.org/10.1590/2317-6431-2025-3050en linkcopy

Stuttering severity in adults: is there an association between self-report and clinical assessment?

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Purpose To verify the association between the self-reported degree of stuttering severity, the stuttering severity index, and the percentage of speech discontinuity in adults who stutter.

Methods Cross-sectional, analytical, observational study that analyzed fluency and stuttering severity in 56 adults who self-reported stuttering. Participants completed a sample characterization questionnaire and underwent spontaneous speech recording via Zoom. Fluency was analyzed using the Fluency Profile Assessment Protocol, considering 200 fluent syllables. Severity was assessed using the Stuttering Severity Instrument, examining frequency, duration of disfluencies, and physical concomitants. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, with the chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis tests, considering p ≤ 0.05.

Results There were significant associations between the self-reported degree of stuttering severity and the percentage of speech discontinuity (p = 0.020), and between the severity index and the percentage of speech discontinuity (p = 0.001).

Conclusion The study highlights the relevance of aligning self-perception with the assessment of stuttering severity, demonstrating the need to understand the individuals in their entirety, from a broad biopsychosocial perspective.

Keywords:
Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences; Language; Stuttering; Childhood-onset fluency disorder; Self report

Variables	N	%
Self-reported severity of stuttering
Mild	7	12.5
Moderate	39	69.6
Severe	10	17.9
Total	56	100.0
Stuttering severity index
Mild	49	87.5
Moderate	2	3.6
Severe	5	8.9
Total	56	100.0
Percentage of speech discontinuity	56
Mean	SD
21.41	12.76

Variables	Self-reported severity of stuttering			p-value
Variables	Mild N (%)	Moderate N (%)	Severe N (%)	p-value
Sex
Males	3 (42.9)	19 (48.7)	4 (40.0)	0.868
Females	4 (57.1)	20 (51.3)	6 (60.0)
Total	7 (100.0)	39 (100.0)	10 (100.0)
Stuttering severity index
Mild	7 (100.0)	37 (94.9)	5 (50.0)	0.002*
Moderate	0 (0.0)	0 (0.0)	2 (20.0)
Severe	0 (0.0)	2 (5.1)	3 (30.0)
Total	7 (100.0)	39 (100.0)	10 (100.0)

Variables	Self-reported severity of stuttering			p-value
Variables	Mild	Moderate	Severe	p-value
Age
Mean±SD	28.57±11.55	29.36±8.94	28.40±9.89	0.852
Median	25.00	28.00	27.50	0.852
Percentage of speech discontinuity (%)
Mean±SD	13.63±6.39	19.83±10.39	33.03±17.46	0.020*
Median	14.50a	17.50	27.15^a	0.020*

Variables	Stuttering severity index			p-value
Variables	Mild N (%)	Moderate N (%)	Severe N (%)	p-value
Sex
Males	22 (44.9)	0 (0.0)	4 (80.0)	0.1321
Females	27 (55.1)	2 (100.0)	1 (20.0)
Total	49 (100.0)	2 (100.0)	5 (100.0)
Age
Mean±SD	29.63±9.50	32.50±6.36	22.40±4.98	0.0662
Median	27.00	32.50	21.00	0.0662
Percentage of speech discontinuity (%)
Mean±SD	18.43±9.41	45.65±25.24	40.90±11.91	0.001² *
Median	16.00a	45.65^a	36.50	0.001² *

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Academia Brasileira de Audiologia Rua Itapeva, 202, conjunto 61, CEP 01332-000, Tel.: (11) 3253-8711 - São Paulo - SP - Brazil
E-mail: revista@audiologiabrasil.org.br

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[1] Subtitle: N = number of individuals; SD = standard deviation; % = percentage