Approximately 1% of the US population stutters at any given point in time. More often than not, stuttering in children is just the result of nervousness or learning the literary ropes, so to speak. In some cases, however, the repeated syllables may point to more difficult challenges for the child and parents may need to seek out help for a stuttering problem. While there is some evidence of a possible genetic link, researchers say some of their studies point to emotional roots.
A study published in the Journal of Communication Disorders in June 2006 found that emotional development is linked to childhood stuttering. To complete the study, researchers had parents of 3-to-5-year-olds fill out a 100-question survey to determine how the stuttering related to the child’s response to emotional events. Researchers found that those who stutter are more emotionally aroused by stressful situations, take longer to settle down from stimulating events and are less able to control their attention than people who do not stutter. “Our findings seem to indicate that kids with behavioral and emotional issues are at greater risk of stuttering, that not all aspects of their emotional reactions can be blamed on stuttering, and some of these reactions may pre-date the onset of stuttering and actually contribute to its onset and development,” concludes study co-author Tedra Walden.
Stuttering in children was found to directly correlate with the individual’s reaction to stressful situations. Even so, researchers say parents should not overreact. “Parents of children known or suspected to be stuttering should not read these findings to suggest that they raise their children in a hermetically sealed jar. Their children should be allowed the full range of emotions and experiences of any other typically developing child,” study co-author Edward G. Conture advised. “However, if the child consistently and routinely reacts to things such as everyday changes in activities or routine to a greater degree and longer than expected — especially if such reactions seem more usual than unusual and appear related to changes in the child’s stuttering — the parent should consider discussing this with a health professional, preferably someone with experience assessing and treating childhood stuttering.”
However, not all research regarding stuttering in children is in sync. In 2008, researcher Bianca Phaal of Canterbury University in England tested cortisol stress hormone levels in the saliva of people who stutter and people who do not. She reported, “There were no significant differences between the children who stutter and those who don’t according to either of the measures of anxiety or the communication apprehension measure; neither was there any relationship between stuttering severity and anxiety or communication apprehension.” However, she did note that past incidences of childhood stuttering can lead to the development of generalized anxiety.
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