Stuttering and Anxiety

Anxiety Disorders, Stuttering, Childhood

Stuttering, Anxiety

Stuttering was defined as a common neurodevelopmental speech disorder characterized by repetitions, prolongations, and interruptions in the flow of speech. In other words, stuttering is a speech disorder characterized by involuntary disruptions to speech which impede the capacity to communicate effectively. Physiological and emotional anxiety has been reported in persons who stutter. It has been reported that as high as 44% of clients seeking treatment for stuttering could be assigned a co-occurring social phobia or social anxiety diagnosis.

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, social anxiety disorder is characterized by marked or intense fear of social or performance-based situations where scrutiny or evaluation by others may occur. Feared situations often include speaking in public, meeting new people, and talking with authority figures. There are several reasons to expect that stuttering may be associated with social anxiety disorder. To begin with, stuttering is accompanied by numerous negative consequences across the lifespan which may increase vulnerability to social and psychological difficulties. These consequences are intensified during the school years when children become more involved in social and speaking situations. As a result, children and adolescents who stutter frequently experience peer victimization, social isolation and rejection, and they may also be less popular than their non-stuttering peers.

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