A component model for diagnosing and treating children who stutter

Nine components of stuttering and their distribution among 54 children who stutter are described. The components are arranged into a model that includes four neurologic components (attending disorder, auditory-processing disorder, sentence-formulation disorder, and oral-motor disorder) and five traditional components (high self-expectations, manipulative stuttering, disruptive communication environment, unrealistic parental expectations, and abnormal parental need for the child to stutter). Diagnostic and treatment usefulness of the model are discussed. Thirty-two of the children have been followed through component-based treatment and 12 mo post termination. Results indicate that treatment was successful with 27 (84%) of the 32 children. Only one child regressed during the 12 mo after treatment ended. These results suggest that treating the neurologic and traditional factors which disrupt fluency improves maintenance and carry-over.     

The influence of gender on occupational aspirations of kindergarten children

By updating and extending previous research on the effect of gender role socialization on occupational choices of children, this research found very sexstereotypical occupational preferences in a sample of 540 kindergarten children. The girls in the study selected occupations that averaged 87% female and the boys selected occupations averaging 84% male. The boys perceived a significantly wider range of vocational options than the girls. In a reversal condition, children were asked to pretend to be of the opposite sex. Most of the children selected occupations with sex ratios favoring their pretended sex; girls were slightly more stereotypic than boys. An unanticipated finding was the extremeness of reactions of the boys to the suggestion that they pretend to be girls. It is argued that current sex-role socialization fails to recognize the realities of the expanding participation of women in the paid labor force.