The Italian Version of the Overall Assessment of Speaker’s Experience of Stuttering – OASES
Anna Accornero, Francesca Del Gado, Sara Marchetti, Dario Strangis, Donatella Tomaiuoli
Appropriate and effective speech therapy for stuttering is based on homogeneous and in-depth preparation, with continuous reference to evidence-based medicine as regards both rehabilitation approaches and assessment protocols. A critical element, which certainly makes it difficult to carry out an evaluation based on scientific evidence in Italy, is the scarcity of protocols translated, validated and standardized in Italian. The process that led to the Italian version of one of the best known protocols in the literature, used in clinical settings to investigate the covert aspects of stuttering, is presented: Overall Assessment of Speaker’s Experience of Stuttering (OASES) by Yaruss & Quesal (2006, 2016). The main goal of the OASES test is to provide speech and language pathologists with a measure of the overall impact stuttering has on a person’s life. The results obtained therefore allow us to identify the unique aspects of the disorder, thus helping clinicians in treatment planning, in monitoring treatment results and in follow-up. The goals, rationale and structure of OASES are described. The protocol includes a technical manual and three response sheets, one for each age group: school-aged children (7-12 years), adolescents (13-17 years), and adults (18 years or above). The tool is designed to be administered to individuals or groups for diagnostic and treatment monitoring purposes.
Keywords
Speech therapy, Stuttering, Assessment, Quality of life.
