Speech sound disorder in the preschool period: Parental evaluations and children's attitudes toward their own speech

Speech sound disorder (SSD) is a multidimensional condition that affects not only speech sound production but also impacts social communication, self-confidence, and academic achievement in preschool children. The aim of this study was to investigate the speech intelligibility of 66 children (20 girls, 46 boys) aged between 4 years and 6 years 11 months, diagnosed with SSD, in relation to both their own and their parents' attitudes toward their speech. Additionally, the relationship between auditory discrimination skills and speech intelligibility was examined. The children's speech production skills were assessed using the Turkish Articulation and Phonology Test – Articulation Subtest (SET), while auditory discrimination skills were measured with the Auditory Discrimination Subtest (IAT). Children's self-perceived attitudes toward their speech were evaluated with the KiddyCAT-TR, and parental perceptions of speech intelligibility were assessed using the In-Context Intelligibility Scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and correlation analyses in SPSS 25.0. The findings revealed that there was no statistically significant correlation between the severity of the speech sound disorder and either the parents' intelligibility ratings or the children's self perceptions. However, a strong positive correlation was observed between mothers' and fathers' intelligibility ratings. Notably, a significant relationship was found only between mothers' intelligibility ratings and children's self-perceived speech attitudes; no such relationship was found for fathers' ratings. Furthermore, no significant correlation was observed between auditory discrimination abilities and either speech intelligibility or children's speech attitudes. These results challenge common assumptions in the existing literature, demonstrating that the severity of speech sound disorders may not directly predict speech intelligibility or self-attitudes in children. The unique relationship between mothers' perceptions and children's self-attitudes highlights the potential importance of maternal sensitivity and awareness in understanding children's speech experiences.