Stuttering Holds Workers Back, Survey Shows

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (March 6, 2006) — A newly released survey by Professor Marshall Rice of the Schulich School of Business at York University, Toronto, found 51 percent of respondents — all of whom stutter — believe they would have a better job if they didn’t have the disorder.

Sixty-eight percent of those surveyed agreed with the statement: “I believe my capabilities, at times, have been misjudged by my supervisors because of my stuttering.”

“The results point to the need to further educate employers about stuttering,” Dr. Rice said. “Clearly, some employers do not understand stuttering and make incorrect assumptions about the abilities of their employees who stutter. This misunderstanding results in reduced employment and promotion opportunities.”

“This survey indicates it is more important than ever for us to focus our efforts on informing the public about stuttering,” said Jane Fraser, president of the 59-year-old nonprofit Stuttering Foundation.

For this reason, the foundation offers an updated brochure, Stuttering: Answers for Employers. “This useful tool should be in the hands of everyone going into a job interview,” Fraser said. Download the brochure.

The survey of 566 people who stutter from 37 countries also found 42 percent felt a job interview was “cut short.” Fourteen percent said an employer told them directly that they would not be hired for a position because of their stuttering. Sixty-one percent agreed with the statement, “I feel I have to be ‘better’ than fluent speakers in order to have the same opportunities for employment.” The largest number of responses came from the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and India.

Editors: Dr. Marshall Rice of the Schulich School of Business at York University can be reached at 416-650-8241 or mrice@schulich.yorku.ca

CELEBRITY FOCUS

Carly Simon

Carly Simon began stuttering severely when she was eight years old.

Lewis Carroll

The recent Disney version of Lewis Carroll’s classic, Alice in Wonderland, garnered a great deal of media hype. Even though the mainstream media has not made mention that Carroll was a person who stuttered, his family history gives credence to the discovery of the genetic link to stuttering. Carroll was born to parents who were first cousins; almost all of their eleven children, three girls and seven boys, struggled with stuttering past childhood.

Kenyon Martin

Kenyon Martin, the basketball sensation who was named to the NBA’s All Star Team in 2004, joins other famous people who stutter in a new brochure. The brochure - which unfolds into a small poster - is available free of charge from The Stuttering Foundation.

The poster is intended to give children and adults who stutter inspiration as they grapple with their speech disorder.

Bill Walton

From BillWalton.com

Thank you for your interest in my life long problem with my speech and communication skills. I was a very shy and reserved young man who could not speak at all without severely stuttering until I was 28 years old. Always a success in the classroom and on the basketball court, I took refuge in the things that I did well as a youngster. A straight A student, my athletic abilities covered the deficiencies that limited my overall growth and development. The game of basketball was my religion, the gym my church. It was a convenient way of avoiding my responsibilities of developing my human relation skills.

When I was 28, a chance encounter at a social event with Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Glickman completely changed my life in so many ways that things have never been the same since, nor have they ever been better. That day, in a very brief, private conversation (one way, mind you, since I literally could not speak at the time) Marty explained, patiently and concisely, that talking, communicating was a skill not a gift or a birthright and that like any skill, whether it be sports, music, business or whatever, needed to be developed over a lifetime of hard work, discipline, organization and practice. Marty gave me some simple tips that day and then encouraged me to take those keys and apply them to methods of learning that I had received from the special teachers that I had come across in my life, particularly the 6 Hall of Fame basketball coaches that I had played for throughout my career. The beginning of my whole new life was as simple as that. No gimmicks, tricks or shortcuts. Just the realization that with some help, guidance and a lot of hard work that I too could do what seemed so easy, simple and natural to everyone else, yet seemed impossibly out of my reach and comprehension.

Emily Blunt

Actress Emily Blunt struggled with stuttering early in her life. A teacher encouraged her to act in a school play at age 12 despite her stuttering.

Blunt’s name is prominently featured on the Stuttering Foundation's list of Famous People Who Stutter.