The Young Evaluators
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Young Evaluators: expectations, experiences and the importance of including young voices when considering the quality of Speech and Language Therapy
IRAS ID
178559
Contact name
Patricia M Chilton
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 1 months, 31 days
Research summary
This project aims to explore what it is like for a young person to experience stammering. For many young people this experience includes going to speech and language therapy appointments. At the moment there is limited understanding of what it is like to experience stammering or speech and language therapy appointments as a young person. This knowledge is missing from the research literature. This means that by default many existing speech and language therapies for young people are designed from the perspective of adults, and most typically professionals.
By adopting a qualitative approach to exploring the experiences and expectations of young people who experience stammering this project will help to promote the voice of young people who experience stammering into the available research evidence that is used increasingly to make decisions about the therapies and services young people access.
The perspective being used in the project is focused on the individual lived experience of young people who experience stammering. The end product of the project will offer an interpretation of this lived experience which will become a new contribution to the available evidence.
10 young people aged between 11 years and 17 years will be interviewed before and after their initial consultation appointment. This “two time point” design allows investigation of the young people’s experience of attending an assessment appointment while keeping this within the wider context of their lived experience of stammering.
The young people will be interviewed in their home or other place where they feel comfortable to talk. The interview design includes a topic guide to ensure the areas of interest for the project are covered while at the same time allowing the interview to be led by what the young person finds most important in their experience of stammering.
REC name
London - Bromley Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/LO/1199
Date of REC Opinion
20 Oct 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion