Relationships between personality characteristics of people who stutter and the impact of stuttering on everyday life.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigates the association between the five-factor model of personality measured by the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) and the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES). The OASES measures the adverse impact of stuttering on a person's life.

DESIGN

Participants in the present study were 112 persons who stutter from Germany.

METHODS

All participants filled in both the NEO-FFI and the OASES questionnaires.

RESULTS

Results revealed a strong positive correlation between the personality trait Neuroticism and scores on the OASES. Moreover, Extraversion was negatively correlated with the OASES scores.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that people with higher Neuroticism and lower Extraversion scores experience a greater impact of stuttering on their daily life. The results underscore the importance of considering personality as a potential moderator or mediator factor in future stuttering research and, potentially, also in treatment.

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

The reader will learn (a) about the different personality dimensions reflected by the NEO-FFI, (b) why it is important to consider the impact of stuttering on everyday life from the perspective of the people who stutter and (c) how personality is linked to the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES).