Desensitization-Based Structured Intervention Program for Individuals With Stuttering

August 9, 2026 updated by: DİLARA BASER

Examining the Effectiveness of a Desensitization-Based Structured Intervention Program for Individuals With Stuttering in Job Interviews

Stuttering is a common fluency disorder characterized by involuntary interruptions in speech flow, such as repetitions, prolongations, and blocks. It affects approximately 1% of the world's population and typically emerges in the early stages of language development, particularly in preschool. The exact cause of stuttering is still unknown, but it is believed to involve various combinations of genetic, developmental, environmental, and neurophysiological factors (Yairi and Ambrose, 2013). Stuttering not only affects an individual's communication skills but can also significantly impact their psychological and emotional state. Individuals may experience persistent anxiety about being ridiculed or negatively evaluated by others during stuttering episodes, and the pressure to speak fluently in everyday situations can create significant stress and anxiety (Guitar, 2013). The ICF model, developed by the World Health Organization, suggests examining an individual's health status not only at the biological level but also in the context of activity, participation, and environmental factors (WHO, 2001). In particular, the ICF-based model proposed by J. Scott Yaruss and Robert W. Quesal for stuttering offers an important framework for explaining the impact of stuttering on an individual's quality of life. In this context, stuttering is characterized by limited participation in social and professional life in terms of the level of participation (Yaruss & Quesal, 2004). Individuals with stuttering may experience a number of problems in their professional lives. Job interviews can be given as an example of these situations. Job interviews are an important starting point in the employment process. Job interviews are a situation that creates anxiety and causes avoidance behaviors for individuals with stuttering (Hohulin et al., 2010). Anxiety is defined as "unease, irrational fear, anxiety, worry, distress caused by an unknown danger, misfortune, fear or expectation originating from the unconscious" (Bakırcıoğlu, 2016: 893). When adult individuals with stuttering are faced with a socially threatening, anxiety-inducing environment, they show physical strain and their anxiety increases during stuttering (Bloodstein, 1995; Craig, 2003). The literature reports a positive correlation between threatening or challenging stimuli and the severity of stuttering. For example; Stuttering is observed to increase when speaking to an authority figure, a group, or impatient or critical listeners (Guitar, 2013). Conversely, the frequency of stuttering generally decreases in non-anxiety-inducing situations, such as speaking to a familiar person or someone who is not an authority figure (Craig, 2006). Furthermore, speakers with severe stuttering are more likely to be subjected to negative evaluations and labeling/stigmatization compared to speakers with less severe stuttering (Gabel, 2006). The fear of negative evaluation is defined by Leary (1983) as the individual being evaluated negatively and hostilely by others, or being stigmatized. Stigmatization, in turn, is described as a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing negative attitudes and behaviors towards individuals (Corrigan & Watson, 2002). The literature includes various therapies for stuttering and the accompanying negative emotional states. One of these approaches is known as desensitization. Desensitization for stuttering is considered an important component of therapy for individuals who stutter. According to most research findings in foreign literature, individuals with stuttering perceive job interviews as a difficult area (Bricker-Katz, Lincoln, and Cumming, 2013; Klein and Hood, 2004; Rice and Kroll, 2006). Furthermore, while many studies focus on the working lives of individuals with stuttering, there are only a few studies specifically addressing job search processes and interviews. No studies addressing job interviews for individuals with stuttering have been found in the local literature. Due to this gap in the literature, our research aims to contribute to the literature and guide future studies in this area. Our study will develop a 10-week desensitization-based therapy program and aims to examine the effects of this structured program on stuttering frequency, fear of negative evaluation, internalized stigma, and anxiety experienced during interviews for individuals with stuttering.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The structured therapy program designed for job interviews is planned for a total of 10 weeks, with pre-tests administered in the first week and post-tests in the last week. (Pre-test measurements will be taken in the 1st week, and post-test measurements in the 10th week.) Data collection will be conducted by the researcher through 40-50 minute individual therapy sessions once a week. Participants who approve the Informed Consent Form (Appendix 8) will be included in the study. Pre-test and post-test measurements will be collected via Google Forms, and the intervention program will be conducted face-to-face in the office in the 8th week, while the other weeks will be conducted online, in a hybrid format. A pilot application will be conducted before the main study begins. Job interviews in the 7th and 8th weeks will be conducted by an expert experienced in job interviews. After the intervention group completes the process, an accelerated program will be applied to the control group. While developing the content of the therapy, the literature was reviewed and desensitization-focused programs were examined (Hohulin and Sawyer, 2010; Çağlayan, 2024). Care was taken to ensure a systematic hierarchical structure in the development of the intervention, and the therapy content included desensitization strategies; education, voluntary stuttering, self-disclosure statements, gradual exposure, cognitive restructuring, scenario-based work, and role-playing exercises.

The program was finalized after obtaining expert opinions from 5 faculty members specializing in stuttering with at least 5 years of experience. The weekly general content plans for the therapies are presented below. WEEK 1:

- Taking pre-tests (via Google Forms) and providing information about the therapy process.

  • Demographic Information Form
  • Stuttering Frequency Measurement (400-syllable speech video recording sample)
  • Internalized Stigma Scale
  • Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale
  • Interview Anxiety Scale
  • Beck Depression Scale (The individual will complete the Beck Depression Scale for exclusion criteria.)
  • Beck Anxiety Scale (The individual will complete the Beck Anxiety Scale for exclusion criteria.)

WEEK 2:

- Providing information about stuttering (types of stuttering, frequency, prevalence, causes, effects of stuttering in adulthood), working on desensitization strategies to training strategies, and supporting the individual in gaining awareness. - Identifying the individual's stuttering moments and types. Talking about their stuttering.

WEEK 3:

  • Discussing career stages and job interviews. (Definitions, content, etc.)
  • Discussing the effects of target variables (fear of negative evaluation, anxiety in selection interviews, self-stigma, frequency of stuttering) on job interviews.

WEEK 4:

  • Discussing SWOT analysis and conducting individual analysis.
  • Based on the results of the analysis, conducting studies on cognitive restructuring strategies from desensitization strategies.

WEEK 5:

  • Practicing with different employer models, both supportive and challenging, created by the researcher.
  • Prioritizing role-playing exercises from desensitization strategies; defining and incorporating strategies such as self-disclosure, acceptance of stuttering, and voluntary stuttering.

WEEK 6:

- Meeting and chatting with an individual who stutters and has job interview experience via the Google Meet platform.

WEEK 7:

- Conducting a job interview over the phone. (by an experienced interviewer using a standard question list)

Planned questions:

"Could you tell us a little about yourself?" "Could you briefly summarize your education and career path?" "What are your strengths?" "What are your areas for improvement?" "How do you cope when faced with a difficult situation? Can you share an example?" "What are your expectations from the job and from us?" "Where do you see yourself in five years?"

WEEK 8:

Conducting a face-to-face job interview. (by an experienced interviewer using a standard question list)

Planned questions: "Could you tell us a little about yourself?" "Could you briefly summarize your education and career path?" "What are your strengths?" "What are your areas for improvement?" "How do you cope when faced with a difficult situation? If you have an example from your own experience, can you share it?" "What are your expectations from work and from us?" "Where do you see yourself in five years?"

WEEK 9:

Discussion with the participant about the intervention process conducted in previous weeks.

A conversation about how they evaluate their desensitization experiences and the termination of the therapy process.

WEEK 10:

Taking final test measurements. (Stuttering Frequency, Internalized Stigma Scale, Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale, Interview Anxiety Scale, Social Validity Form)

These are the measurements taken.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
36

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Aged 18-35,
  • Having had at least one job interview before,
  • Not actively receiving speech and language therapy support,
  • Having a stuttering frequency of 3% or higher

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Lacking an ethical statement
  • Above-average results on Beck Depression and Beck Anxiety Inventories

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Experimental
Participants will receive the structured desensitization-based job interview intervention program.
Behavioral: Structured Desensitization-Based Job Interview Program
Participants will receive a structured desensitization-based job interview intervention program consisting of eight weekly individual sessions. The program includes psychoeducation about stuttering and job interview processes, identification of anxiety-provoking situations, cognitive restructuring, voluntary stuttering, graded exposure through simulated job interviews, and individualized feedback. The intervention aims to reduce job interview anxiety and improve communication confidence and interview performance in adults who stutter.
No Intervention: Control
Participants will not receive any intervention during the study period and will complete the same evaluation program. Following the study proposal and subsequent analysis, the program will be implemented within the framework of freedom and ethical values.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Stuttering frequency
Time Frame: Baseline (Week 0) and Week 10
Change in stuttering frequency calculated from standardized speech samples.
Baseline (Week 0) and Week 10
ANXIETY IN SELECTION INTERVIEWS
Time Frame: Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)
MEASURE OF ANXIETY IN SELECTION INTERVIEWS (MASI)
Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)
fear of negative evaluation
Time Frame: Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)
Change in fear of negative evaluation measured using the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (BFNE). Higher scores indicate greater fear of negative evaluation.
Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)
self-stigma
Time Frame: Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)
Change in self-stigma related to stuttering measured using the Self-Stigma of Stuttering Scale (4S-TR). Higher scores indicate greater self-stigma.
Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after completion of the 10-week intervention (Week 10)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
DİLARA BASER

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 20, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
January 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 9, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 9, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 14, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 14, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 9, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 3048

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

because of ethical values

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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