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Dr. Clyde M. Narramore, graduate of Columbia University, New York City, is a psychologist and Consultant in Research and Guidance with one of the largest school systems in America.
Clyde M. Narramore, Ed.D.
help one who stutters. Just a sym pathetic, understanding person is helpful. However, the services of a psychiatrist, psychologist or speech therapist are certainly advised. Pro fessionally trained persons can get to the basic causes and can provide ex cellent help. Usually we need to work with the family as well as with the patient. People who stutter need a process, not a lecture nor a book. Very often a year of counseling and ther apy is beneficial. They need permis sive climates, and an opportunity to talk about their hostilities and jeal ousies. They should have opportun ity to discuss their resentments^ fears, confusions, special preoccupations and doubts. Those who stutter need fam ilies and friend's who are not critical, who do not punish, frighten, nor threaten them. Stutterers usually feel that others don’t have time to listen to them. They feel they should not tell just how they think about things. Although treatment consists mostly of discovering and removing factors that produce emotional tensions, there is also great value in practice in articulation and phonation. Cases of stuttering should be treated by clin icians trained in speech pathology. The Christian Home Prevention is usually dependent upon the presence in early home-life of an atmosphere of security and mu tual love. Children who are sure of their places in the home circle and who are enabled to feel adequate and loved, develop a feeling that is con ducive to emotional stability. Such children, experience a minimum of frustration that leads to speech dis orders. When parents are saved, their na tures are changed—or it may be said that they have new natures. If par ents are daily studying and obeying God’s Word, it is natural for them to be loving toward each other and their children. A godly, Christ-centered, happy home is the best preventive for stuttering. Readers are invited to submit questions which will be answered in future issues. Address questions to Dr. Clyde M. Narramore, King's Business, 558 South Hope Street, Los Angeles 17, California.— ED. THE K IN G 'S BUSINESS
as a result of improper treatment or handling in the home or at school. Ridicule, unfavorable comparisons with brothers and sisters, strict discip linary measures, nagging, fear, anxi ety, and similar stress-raising factors may bring on stuttering. Children who have difficulty in controlling their feelings, who are easily em barrassed and who frequently worry are particularly vulnerable to Stutter ing. Research indicates that most stutterers are emotional, excitable and sensitive. What to Do When children are born they are not destined to be stutterers. We make them that way. Whether a child or an adult becomes a stutterer depends on how he is treated by his parents, friends, teachers, associates and rela tives. Since stuttering is usually a symp tom of emotional maladjustment, one cannot expect it to be remedied until the basic conflicts and emotional stresses and strains have been greatly reduced. There is evidence that some persist in their speech spasms because of thé recognition and attention which such verbal deviations gain for them. It is possible that his speech defect may constitute the individual’s only bid for sympathy and a sense of uniqueness. Stutterers may not be aware of this, and just knowirig it may not help them. As noted before, authorities differ regarding procedures for correcting stuttering, however there seems to be considerable agreement on the fol lowing points: (1) establish a sym pathetic relationship with the individ ual so that confidence and security may prevail, (2) remove the tension- producing forces that seem to be re sponsible, (3) encourage the individ ual to take part in social activities— to become a good group member, (4) ignore, or at least do not comment upon the person’s speech, (5) provide for relaxation and rest, (6) under competent guidance provide an or ganized program of reading aloud, re citations, and ordinary conversations. One doesn’t need to be a highly trained speech therapist in order to
STU T T ER ING l have a boy in my Sunday school class who stutters badly. What causes it? Is there anything I can do to help him? There are many forms of stutter ing, and authorities tell us that there are over a million people in the Unit ed States who stutter. Not long ago I was talking with a young man who has a speech problem, and he told me that he would rather have almost any handicap than to be unable to express himself when he desired. Probably very few of us realize the mental anguish of those who stutter. One person told me that all through high school he was accused of cheat ing because he was never able to an swer questions in class, yet he always made superior grades on written ex aminations. It was embarrassing and sometimes impossible for him to ex plain his difficulty, to his teacher. I have a friend who is a speech specialist with unusually wide experi ence. She states that most stutterers are above average in intelligence. It is not unusual to find that they have high levels of aspiration, seeking to “get ahead,” and to do well in life. Stutterers are often characterized by rather aggressive, outgoing personal ities, and with capacities for deep feeling. Causes There are various theories concern ing the causes of stuttering, including structural defects, chemical unbal ance, nutrition, emotional maladjust ment, physical pathology, disruption of the speech center by change of handedness and various forms of psy chological tension. I think it might be said that much has been surmised, but not a great deal is known re garding the actual nature of speech disorders. Many authorities believe that stut tering appears as the result of psy chological factors. Hence, it is not primarily a speech defect, but rather a symptom of personality maladjust ment. Conflicts and emotional ten sions are apparently the basis of such speech difficulties. On this basis, stuttering may occur 30
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