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From: Ryan Pollard
Date: 13 Oct 2008
Time: 19:44:30 -0500
Remote Name: 70.57.5.81
I’m glad you enjoyed the paper. We expected the device to be immediately effective due to the vast literature dating back to the 1950’s documenting the reliably strong effects of various types of altered auditory feedback. We were most interested in whether those initial effects would last over 4 months’ time or dissipate. The fact that the observable benefits were perishable for our group could have been due to several factors. Perhaps some subjects needed concurrent treatment with the device to sustain their improved fluency, or maybe some subjects got used to the second speech signal and it consequently lost its effectiveness. I can only speculate, though, as our experimental design didn’t allow for us to make any firm conclusions as to why this occurred. Your point about reduced anxiety and increased confidence is well taken. The improved PSI scores post-treatment and several subjects’ self-report comments attest that the SpeechEasy did impact both of those aspects of stuttering, which is critical for lasting success in managing the disorder. Regarding your last question, I doubt that there would be any adverse effects down the road if the client thinks the device is more beneficial than a typical observer would judge it to be.