IPods to the Rescue for Folks Who Stutter

A $50.00 device used to modify MP3 players provides new low-cost treatment options for folks who stutter. University of Mississippi researcher, Greg Snyder says his own experience as a person who stutters led him to look for new options. Great news for leaders who face stuttering problems such as John Scully did.

John Scully, once president of Pepsi-Cola, succeeded in overtaking Coca-Cola as the #1 soft drink. He then changed "coasts and cultures" to become president of Apple Computer for ten years. In his autobiography he shares how he burst through the stuttering barrier...

"I was determined to build a strength out of what was originally a weakness. I went to the theater to watch how performers positioned themselves on stage. I'd practice for hours. I became obsessed with the idea that I was going to become better than anyone else as a business communicator."

Similar determination led Snyder to tap in to new research about the brain to bring about new options! He joined the ranks with researchers who realize that speech feedback might work by altering the way the brain processes speech.

As a result of this research, Snyder determined that speech initiation is a major part of stuttering. For instance if someone stutters on the word, "st-t-t-atue," the problem may not be the "t" but failure to initiate the "a" sound. Snyder's device records his own vowel sounds and plays those vowel sounds back to enhance fluency. About 40% of the participants in Snyder's study found significant fluency enhancement while using the device... Others found it effective, but disliked the nuisance of constant vowel sounds.

Though there have been advancements in many areas connected to the brain, when it comes to stuttering, "Most of the 'common knowledge' thought by the public and even within the field isn't based on science, but rather people's 'common sense' prejudice," Snyder says.

Because the current paradigm believed – and still largely believes – that stuttering is a psychological problem, many professionals continue to believe that this speech feedback ‘distracts’ people from their stuttering, thus enhancing fluent speech,” he said. “Other professionals believe that the speech feedback slows down the rate of speech, thus enhancing fluent speech. Both of these premises are not easily supported with science.

Hopefully we'll see even more new breakthroughs... Great news that Greg Snyder's $50.00 MP3 device can replace earlier types that cost 100 times that amount!