The ability to produce speech that is free-flowing and smooth is taken for granted by most individuals, except those who stutter. Because so much of human interaction presupposes effective and effortless verbal communication, stuttering can be seriously restricting and even emotionally devastating for many children and adults.

Stuttering is a problem for approximately one person out of every hundred. It is typically characterized by involuntary motor disruption to the flow of speech and usually has an onset between two and six years of age. For many years, it was believed to be a psychological dysfunction, and treatments were geared towards dealing with the "neurosis" rather than the speech behaviour itself.

Recently, research has led to a new view of stuttering. It is now regarded as a behaviour which can be modified through a systematic relearning of the mechanics of speech. Programs which combine the principles of learning and behaviour have enabled those who stutter to effectively change their speech patterns.

More than 20 years ago, the Department of Speech Pathology at the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry was the first Canadian clinic to introduce the Precision Fluency Shaping Program, a specialized treatment for stuttering. Recently, this intensive treatment program has been moved out of a hospital setting to the community and now operates under the auspices of the Speech Foundation of Ontario. The Stuttering Centre is a facility that provides clinical services, educational programs, and conducts state-of-the art research into fluency disorders.

  Click here to read a recent article about the Stuttering Centre that appeared in Macleans Magazine.