Articles

The Relationship Between the Communication Attitudes of Preschool Children Who Stutter and Their Parents’ Cognitive, Emotional, and Behavioral Responses

AUTHOR
Aynur Senocak, Seçil Aydın Oral
INFORMATION
2026, Vol. 11, Issue 1 / pp. 1-14
e-ISSN
2508-5948
p-ISSN

ABSTRACT

Purpose The aim of this study is to evaluate the link between parents' reactions to the stuttering of their children and the communication attitudes of the latter regarding their speech problem. Methods The study used a correlational quantitative research design involving 40 children who stutter (between the ages of 36-71 months), along with their mothers and fathers. Data was gathered using the KiddyCAT-TR (children's communication attitudes) and the RSDS (parents' reactions on cognitive, behavioral, and emotional subscales). Results Mothers reported having higher levels of reactions, scores on all subscales, and higher severity perception of their children's stuttering compared to fathers (p < .01). Positive correlation coefficients were observed between the children's negative communication attitudes and total reactions of their mothers (r = .493, p = .001) and fathers (r = .465, p = .003). It was found that mothers tend to react cognitively-emotionally while fathers reacted behaviorally-emotionally. Conclusions Mothers exhibited higher intensity and severity perception compared to fathers. An inverse link was found between the children's negative communication attitudes and parental reactions, especially on the emotional subscale. The finding emphasizes the importance of stuttering as a family affair and calls for family assessment and intervention.

Keyword
Stuttering Parental responses Communication attitude Stuttering severity Preschool

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