To be or not to be: Stuttering and the human costs of being “un-disabled”

Abstract

Purpose: The centrality of communicating in human life means that communication difficulties are experienced at a deeply personal level and have significant implications for identity. Intervention methods may interact positively or negatively with these experiences.

Method: This paper explores this intersection in the case of stuttering, suggesting that some intervention styles may dovetail unhelpfully with the “mainstream” prizing of normalcy. In particular, most “western” societies offer a performance-oriented milieu which prizes efficiency, immediacy and competitiveness, diverting energy from the equally important work of understanding and integrating difference.

Result: Given that a person who stutters speaks fluently and with a stutter, stuttering can lean toward a complex view of disability identity—being both able and disabled. This split repertoire invites psychologically costly efforts at being “un-disabled”.

Conclusion: Interventions which amplify this tendency can contribute to an alienation from self amid strivings for normalcy.

Keywords::

• Stuttering
• normalcy
• identity
• split repertoire
• intervention

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.