Does the voice improve with vocal hygiene education? A study of some instrumental voice measures in a group of kindergarten teachers

J Voice. 1994 Sep;8(3):279-91. doi: 10.1016/s0892-1997(05)80300-5.

Abstract

This study investigated the efficacy of a program of vocal hygiene education designed for an occupational group at risk for dysphonia, namely, kindergarten teachers. Twelve female teachers explored concepts and knowledge of vocal abuse and vocal hygiene in a workshop session and attempted to practice vocal hygiene for 2 months. They showed significant voice improvement as assessed instrumentally in terms of three acoustic and electroglottographic parameters. There was no significant change of voice in a control group of 13 teachers. The results suggest that teachers were able to improve their voices if they significantly reduced vocal abuses in daily life and practiced specific strategies to maintain classroom order and reduce the use of voice in teaching.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Controlled Clinical Trial

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Female
  • Health Education*
  • Humans
  • Inservice Training
  • Occupational Diseases / prevention & control*
  • Phonation
  • Sound Spectrography
  • Speech Acoustics
  • Teaching*
  • Voice Disorders / prevention & control*
  • Voice Training*