Effects of Stuttering on the Individual
written by Julie Farnsworth
Every person stumbles over their words now and then. When one is dysfluent, they are usually embarrassed, but quickly recover. For people who stutter (PWS), each dysfluency is a fearful, anxiety-filled experience. A life filled with these difficult experiences can effect a person's self-concept, personality and personal relationships. Stuttering affects friends and family of the person who stutters as well. Moreover, family and friend's reactions and feelings about the stuttering are significant in understanding the effect of stuttering on the person who stutters. The following will give insight into the emotional and psychosocial ramifications of stuttering on the individual and those around him or her.
Self-concept refers to how a person sees him or herself. For many people who stutter, their self-concept revolves around their stuttering. Listeners tend to react in a negative way when someone stutters, which reinforces the idea that stuttering is unacceptable social behavior. PWS may label themselves as "stutterers" and take on all the negative stereotypes that go with it. Another problem that PWS may face is a difference between reality and body image. Since stuttering does not show up in a person's physical characteristics when silent, the individual has a mixed up body image. They can be normal one moment and dysfluent the next. Because of a conflicting body image, the person may try to hide their stuttering, to appear "normal." The stress of a negative self- concept and trying to hide the stuttering can cause the stuttering to become more severe. (Silverman, 1996)
When a person's self-concept is altered, he or she may also experience some changes in personality. Stuttering is not a personality disorder and there is not a defined stuttering personality. However, there are some traits that many people who stutter share. First, people who stutter tend to be not as outgoing as they normally would be if they did not stutter. People who stutter may avoid talking situations for fear of getting laughed at, or misunderstood. Another trait common to some PWS is an unwillingness to express anger in an open way, even when there may be cause to do so. One reason for this trait may be fear of rejection. Third, many people experience depression as a reaction to their stuttering. The depression can be a result of grieving the loss of fluency. The next common trait of PWS is guilt. The person may feel that he or she is continuing to stutter because of something that he or she did not do. Many people give advice like slow down, making the person who stutters feel as if he or she is responsible for his or her own stuttering. Guilt can also stem from the person who stutters feeling as if they are taking up the listener's time. Anxiety about speaking is the next personality characteristic that many PWS share. Anxiety can come from the reactions that persons who stutter experiences every time they stutter. The final personality trait that many PWS share is a feeling of loss of control. The person who stutters feels like the locus of control is outside of themselves. All of these characteristics are common in PWS but not necessarily present in all cases. (Silverman, 1996)
These changes in self-concept and personality are often due to the reactions of listeners. The reactions and feelings of parents, friends and other listeners can determine how a person who stutters will feel about him or herself. If the reaction of listeners is nervous and anxious behavior, the person who stutters will pick up on it. The feelings and attitudes of the person who stutters will be projected onto the listener as well.
There are a few groups of people who can have an impact on a person who stutter's self-worth. First, parents play a major role in their child's overall development. Since parents are usually the people that a child has most contact with, their reactions to stuttering will be important. Some parents react by patiently waiting for the child to finish, acting unconcerned about their child's stuttering. However, many parents react to their child's stuttering in a different way. Some will finish their child's sentences, tell the child to slow down, or give other words of advice. These reactions can be a result of fear. The parent's of a child who stutters do not want their child to stutter and are sometimes unaware that the child is not stuttering on purpose. Parents will often react by hiding their stuttering child, completely unaware that they are doing so. They may protect their child from circumstances in which the child has to speak. Since parents are so influential in the first part of a child's life, their feelings may have a significant impact on the attitude of their stuttering child. (Starkweather and Givens- Ackerman, 1997)
Teachers may encounter stuttering students on a daily basis. When a child who stutters wants to answer a question, he or she may use different words than they normally would in an attempt to avoid difficult words. Sometimes a child may try to avoid answering at all by saying "I don't know." In these situations the teacher may not realize that the child is trying to avoid stuttering and will view the child as less intelligent that he or she really is. Frederick Murray (1980), a person who stutters, called one behavior he saw in adults "warts treatment." This happened when the teacher realized that the child was a stutterer and tried to ignore the problem, as if it were a wart, hoping it would disappear.
The person who stutters faces some difficult emotional obstacles in life. The anxiety and fear accompanying their stuttering cause changes in self- concept and personality. People who stutter also cause changes in the attitudes and reactive behaviors of those around them. Parents fear that their child will continue to stutter. While trying to prevent their child from stuttering, some parents are reinforcing their child's stuttering behaviors. Knowing how a person is affected by stuttering will give us a better ability to cope with the disorder.
References
Murray, Frederick P. (1980) A stutterer's story. Chicago, Illinois: Interstate
Silverman, Franklin H. (1996) Stuttering and other fluency disorders. Needham Heights, MA: Simon and Schuster.
Starkweather, C. Woodruff Givens-Ackerman, Janet (1997) Stuttering. Austin, Texas: Pro-ed.
[ Home ]