Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Georgia State University, 30 Pryor St SW, Atlanta, GA, 30303, USA.
Department of Teaching and Learning, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, 33620, USA.
BMC Psychol. 2020 Oct 31;8(1):113. doi: 10.1186/s40359-020-00481-7.
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between executive function (EF), stuttering, and comorbidity by examining children who stutter (CWS) and children who do not stutter (CWNS) with and without comorbid conditions. Data from the National Health Interview Survey were used to examine behavioral manifestations of EF, such as inattention and self-regulation, in CWS and CWNS.
The sample included 2258 CWS (girls = 638, boys = 1620), and 117,725 CWNS (girls = 57,512; boys = 60,213). EF, and the presence of stuttering and comorbid conditions were based on parent report. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the distribution of stuttering and comorbidity across group and sex. Regression analyses were to determine the effects of stuttering and comorbidity on EF, and the relationship between EF and socioemotional competence.
Results point to weaker EF in CWS compared to CWNS. Also, having comorbid conditions was also associated with weaker EF. CWS with comorbidity showed the weakest EF compared to CWNS with and without comorbidity, and CWS without comorbidity. Children with stronger EF showed higher socioemotional competence. A majority (60.32%) of CWS had at least one other comorbid condition in addition to stuttering. Boys who stutter were more likely to have comorbid conditions compared to girls who stutter.
Present findings suggest that comorbidity is a common feature in CWS. Stuttering and comorbid conditions negatively impact EF.
本研究旨在通过考察伴有和不伴有共病的口吃儿童（CWS）和不口吃儿童（CWNS），研究执行功能（EF）、口吃和共病之间的关系。本研究使用全国健康访谈调查的数据，考察了 CWS 和 CWNS 的 EF 行为表现，如注意力不集中和自我调节。
该样本包括 2258 名 CWS（女生 638 名，男生 1620 名）和 117725 名 CWNS（女生 57512 名，男生 60213 名）。EF 以及口吃和共病的存在是基于家长报告。描述性统计用于描述口吃和共病在组间和性别间的分布。回归分析用于确定口吃和共病对 EF 的影响，以及 EF 与社会情感能力之间的关系。
结果表明，CWS 的 EF 比 CWNS 弱。此外，共病也与 EF 较弱有关。与 CWNS 有或无共病相比，有共病的 CWS 表现出最弱的 EF，而没有共病的 CWS 表现出最强的 EF。EF 较强的儿童表现出较高的社会情感能力。大多数（60.32%）CWS 除了口吃外还有至少一种其他共病。与女孩相比，男孩更有可能出现共病。
目前的研究结果表明，共病是 CWS 的一个常见特征。口吃和共病会对 EF 产生负面影响。
