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From: Lynne Shields
Date: 21 Oct 2011
Time: 10:30:16 -0500
Remote Name: 68.188.68.2
Katie, You are asking a very broad question which I don't think can be answered easily in this context. What I do to assess fluency depends on the age of the person, the presenting problems, and the goal of the person or their family, in the case where the client is a child. I will tell you that while I may use the SSI-4 to gain some data (percent of stuttered syllables, etc.), I do not see that as being the primary focus of the evaluation. I am more interested in finding out how the person perceives their stuttering (or how family members perceive it), and what impact stuttering is having on their life. There are many good rating scales that can help in these areas--most good textbooks on fluency disorders will give you a good sample of these. When the client is a young child, the focus may be on beginning the process of determining whether the child is developing a chronic stuttering problem or is likely to recovery normal fluency without intervention. That often takes more than one visit, and there is no simple 'test' that is available to make this decision. Looking at risk factors that are present is important in evaluating young children. Hope this gives you at least the beginning of an answer. Regards, Lynne