The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering Scale-Revised (UTBAS-R): Streamlining a cognitions checklist.

Jones, M; Rogers, K; O'Brian, S; Lowe, R; Menzies, R

The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering Scale-Revised (UTBAS-R): Streamlining a cognitions checklist.

Jones, M Rogers, K O'Brian, S Lowe, R

Menzies, R

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Publisher:: Elsevier
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: J Fluency Disord, 2026, 88, pp. 106212
Issue Date:: 2026-02-24

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Jones, M
dc.contributor.author	Rogers, K
dc.contributor.author	O'Brian, S
dc.contributor.author	Lowe, R https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3826-5306
dc.contributor.author	Menzies, R
dc.date.accessioned	2026-03-15T11:53:10Z
dc.date.available	2026-02-18
dc.date.available	2026-03-15T11:53:10Z
dc.date.issued	2026-02-24
dc.identifier.citation	J Fluency Disord, 2026, 88, pp. 106212
dc.identifier.issn	0094-730X
dc.identifier.issn	1873-801X
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/194340
dc.description.abstract	BACKGROUND: The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering Scale (UTBAS) is a widely used measure, available in 17 languages, designed to identify negative cognitions of adults who stutter. However, with a total of 198 response requirements (three subscales with 66 items each), it is long and impractical for use in many clinical and research settings. We conducted two studies. Study 1 investigated the correlation between the three subscales to determine if any of the scales could be removed. Study 2 sought to reduce the total number of items based on floor and ceiling effects, high levels of correlation with other items, and item-response (IRT) theory fit statistics. METHOD: We analysed UTBAS data from the Australian Stuttering Research Centre (ASRC) database. Participants were adults who stutter and who had completed the UTBAS as part of their participation in either a speech restructuring and/or cognitive behaviour therapy-based research trial. RESULTS: Study 1 (n = 316) revealed strong, positive relationships between subscale total scores (r values ≥ 0.88). This finding was consistent for pre- and post-treatment UTBAS scores and was statistically significant (P < 0.001). Study 2 (n = 431) revealed 7 of scale 1 items with floor or ceiling effects, and 6 items highly correlated with others. An initial IRT identified 11 items with poor fit. The top 20 items with the highest slope parameters were finally selected. CONCLUSION: Results demonstrate redundancy of the second and third subscales and 46 items of the UTBAS. We propose a preliminary revised version of the UTBAS (UTBAS-R) consisting of 20 items and one subscale.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Elsevier
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1132370
dc.relation.ispartof	J Fluency Disord
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.jfludis.2026.106212
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	11 Medical and Health Sciences, 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, 20 Language, Communication and Culture
dc.subject.classification	Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology
dc.subject.classification	32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
dc.subject.classification	47 Language, communication and culture
dc.subject.classification	52 Psychology
dc.title	The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering Scale-Revised (UTBAS-R): Streamlining a cognitions checklist.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	88
utslib.location.activity	United States
utslib.for	11 Medical and Health Sciences
utslib.for	17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
utslib.for	20 Language, Communication and Culture
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups/Australian Stuttering Research Centre (ASRC)
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2026-03-15T11:53:02Z
pubs.publication-status	Published online
pubs.volume	88

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering Scale (UTBAS) is a widely used measure, available in 17 languages, designed to identify negative cognitions of adults who stutter. However, with a total of 198 response requirements (three subscales with 66 items each), it is long and impractical for use in many clinical and research settings. We conducted two studies. Study 1 investigated the correlation between the three subscales to determine if any of the scales could be removed. Study 2 sought to reduce the total number of items based on floor and ceiling effects, high levels of correlation with other items, and item-response (IRT) theory fit statistics. METHOD: We analysed UTBAS data from the Australian Stuttering Research Centre (ASRC) database. Participants were adults who stutter and who had completed the UTBAS as part of their participation in either a speech restructuring and/or cognitive behaviour therapy-based research trial. RESULTS: Study 1 (n = 316) revealed strong, positive relationships between subscale total scores (r values ≥ 0.88). This finding was consistent for pre- and post-treatment UTBAS scores and was statistically significant (P < 0.001). Study 2 (n = 431) revealed 7 of scale 1 items with floor or ceiling effects, and 6 items highly correlated with others. An initial IRT identified 11 items with poor fit. The top 20 items with the highest slope parameters were finally selected. CONCLUSION: Results demonstrate redundancy of the second and third subscales and 46 items of the UTBAS. We propose a preliminary revised version of the UTBAS (UTBAS-R) consisting of 20 items and one subscale.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/194340