A Theory of Stuttering
A Theory of Stuttering
Here, you find articles about my theory of stuttering
and about particular aspets of the theory.
Journal of Mediacl Hypotheses, 2023. DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2023.111166
Abstract:
Developmental stuttering has been scientifically researched for about a hundred years, but the cause is still unknown. Here, a comprehensive causal hypothesis is presented, from the factors contributing to a predisposition for stuttering to the mechanism underlying the core symptoms: A deficit in attention regulation and/or auditory processing abets a misallocation of attention, i.e., of perceptual and processing capacity, during speech; this results in poor processing of the auditory feedback of speech. Insufficiently processed auditory feedback causes error signals in the speech network which, by an error-induced interaction between cerebellum and basal ganglia, interrupts the speech flow against the speaker’s will. The allocation of attention during speech is hypothesized to be a variable state that forms the interface between the physiological pathomechanism of stuttering, on the one hand, and situational, cognitive, and emotional factors influencing stuttering severity, on the other hand; the interaction between both accounts for the situational variability of the disorder. The hypothesis implicates that increased attention to the auditory feedback of speech (listening to one’s voice) reduces stuttering – this opens, both, a way to test the hypothesis and to improve the therapy.
DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2024.111415
Abstract:
Developmental stuttering is a speech disorder that affects about one percent of the adult population worldwide. The cause is still unknown, but not a few researchers have suspected poor auditory-motor integration to be a causal factor. Almost all people who stutter are more or totally fluent in certain conditions, for instance, when speaking in chorus or alone to themselves, in time with the clicking of a metronome, or with delayed or frequency-altered auditory feedback. Understanding why stuttering disappears in these specific conditions could help understand why it occurs in normal speaking conditions. Here, the first unified account for the effect is proposed, based on evidence that receptive speech processing depends on attention to the speech signal. It is proposed that fluency-enhancing conditions re-allocate the speaker’s attention, that is, the perceptual and processing capacities, by drawing attention to the auditory feedback of speech. This improves auditory-motor integration, which reduces stuttering. The hypothesis is discussed for all well-known fluency-enhancing conditions, and consequences for therapy are outlined.