The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of time-out from speaking on the frequency of moderate stuttering.
Two parallel single subject studies were carried out concurrently. Two adult moderate stutterers were selected as subjects.
Two sessions of baserate measurement were followed by nine sessions in which 10 seconds of time-out from speaking was made contingent upon the stuttering of Subject A. Subject B was the control subject for the first nine sessions and he received no consequences for stuttering. With session twelve, Subject A became the control and Subject B was required to stop speaking for 10 seconds following each stuttering behavior.
Time-out from speaking, signalled by a red light, was instituted contingent upon subject stuttering. Results of the study showed the rate of stuttering decreased during the use of time-out procedures. Stuttering was shown to increase when time-out from speaking was withdrawn as a consequence for stuttering.
It was concluded that the time-out from speaking used in this study was effective in reducing stuttering behavior
