Stuttering Research Paper

Instructions:
Please read the scenario below - it is fictional and has all the information you need. Carefully read the questions posed and write a 2-4 page response (double-spaced) in narrative format. I will not read anything past 4 pages. As you identify issues, make sure to cite the applicable regulations. Write in paragraph form.

Scenario:
Dr. Jones, a speech pathologist at the National Institutes of Health, wants to show that the prevailing theories about the causes of stuttering are wrong. Stuttering is a speech problem characterized by repetitions, pauses, or drawn out syllables and sometimes words. It has been thought that stuttering has an organic or genetic cause. This meant you were either born a stutterer or not a stutterer

During the first stage of the experiment, the group labeled ‘normal speakers’ were given positive encouragement but the other group was not. The group labeled ‘stutterers’ were made more self-conscious about stuttering. They were lectured about stuttering and told to take extra care not to repeat words. Other teachers and staff at the boarding school they attended were even unknowingly recruited to reinforce the label as the researchers told them the whole group they were stutterers.

Of the six 'normal ' children in the stuttering group, five began stuttering after the negative reinforcement therapy. Of the six children who had stuttered before the negative reinforcement therapy, three became worse. In comparison, only one of the children in the group labeled 'normal ' had greater speech problems after the study.

The second stage of his experiment involved dividing all of the children into two groups. The first group received a simple steroid pill approved by FDA for use in various immune conditions. Dr. Jones told the children that this pill had been approved by the government and could cure stuttering. The second group had surgery to remove a portion of their uvula—thought by Dr. Jones to contribute to speech