Helping Children Develop Healthy Attitudes Toward Stuttering J. Scott Yaruss, Ph.D. Stuttering Center of Western Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh

Wait a minute!!! What do you mean by, “Healthy Attitudes Toward Stuttering” ?!?

Attitude Matters Stuttering can have a profound impact on children’s ability to succeed in life –But … it doesn’t have to be this way! As NSP parents, you know that the most successful adult speakers are those who have been able to accept their stuttering –Like stuttering, the process of developing healthy attitudes can begin in early childhood

It is not stuttering that holds people back... It is how people react to their stuttering

How should we expect children to react to stuttering?

Feelings about Stuttering It is normal for children to have emotions and feelings about their stuttering –It is also normal for you to have emotions about feelings about your child’s stuttering Children don’t always understand their feelings…you can help!

The Traditional Role of Parents In speech therapy, parents typically receive lots of advice about how to help children speak more fluently –“Slow down your own speech” –“Pause before speaking” –“Shorten and simply your sentences” –“Don’t interrupt the child” –“Don’t tell the child to ‘slow down’”

Helping children speak more fluently is good... …but it’s not enough!!!

So…what else can parents do?

Parents Can Also Help Children... Understand what they are doing when they stutter and how to change it Learn how to react to stuttering and how to deal with other people’s reactions Interpret what it means to have a speech disorder and (for older children) accept it Feel acceptance regardless of their speech

Parents Can…WHAT?!? Many parents have their own issues and concerns about stuttering, making it difficult to react supportively Plus, parents are consistently told not to react to their children’s stuttering… –“Do nothing at any time, by word or deed or posture or facial expression, that would serve to call attention to interruptions in (your child's) speech. –(Johnson, 1962)

The Parent’s Dilemma Watching children stutter is hard! –It is nearly impossible to watch our children struggle with any difficulty without trying to do something--anything--to help them So...the advice to “just ignore it” is in direct conflict with our parental instincts –The advice is wrong...our instincts are right!

Is It Really Okay to Talk about Stuttering? In a word…YES! –“There are no published reports of a relationship between discussing...stuttering and sustained increases in the frequency or severity of stuttering” »--Zebrowski & Schum (1993) –Children who stutter do not respond adversely when parents provide feedback about their speech fluency. »--Lincoln & Onslow (1997)

Keeping Talking in Perspective Talking is just another motor skill young children need to develop It is perfectly normal for young children to make mistakes when learning to talk –Children make mistakes when learning every other motor behavior and we accept it without concern For older children who stutter, we need to recognize that stuttering is normal for them

Why Talk about Stuttering? This problem is so awful that my parents can't bear to talk... about it. I felt isolated and frustrated…like stuttering was something to be ashamed of Some quotes from adults who stutter --Rustin & Cook (1995)

Why Talk about Stuttering? Break the “Conspiracy of Silence” (Starkweather & Givens-Ackerman, 1997) Help children understand stuttering Help children feel more comfortable about their speaking abilities Help children learn how to react to stuttering Help to normalize stuttering

Okay, So… What Should We Say? (It depends…)