Using actors and peers in the clinical education of stuttering: Results from a mixed methods study

Purpose: The use of trained actors in the clinical education of helping professionals has been well-documented. However, little is known about the potential benefit of using actors in the clinical education of speech-language pathology students specific to stuttering. This mixed methods study examined the perceptions of 26 participants related to their experiences with peers and two trained actors in a graduate-level fluency disorders course. Methods: These experiences took place in the context of a simulated meeting following the review of hypothetical fluency diagnostic data. After the simulations, participants provided quantitative and qualitative responses reflecting on their experiences with a peer and actor in regard to their interpersonal skills, ability to communicate diagnostic information, and the benefit the experience had on their learning. Results: Quantitative ratings showed that participants felt more confident explaining information related to the nature of stuttering with the actor compared to the peer. Among some of themes which emerged from the qualitative analysis were that participants viewed their experiences with the actors as natural, genuine, and contributing to new insights in their abilities. Conclusions: The use of actors in the clinical education of stuttering was found to be beneficial to student learning related to their clinical skills.