Research into the experiences of counselling for adults who stammer
By David Jones

During 2003 I carried out a research project for my MA in Counselling Studies on the experiences that adults who stammer had in counselling. My interest came from my own experiences as a covert stammerer and from my desire to improve the service that people who stammer can expect from their counsellors. I have prepared a paper based on the research which has been submitted to the British Journal of Guidance and Counselling.

I interviewed eight people, six men and two women who had used different types of counselling, including Gestalt, NLP and person-centred. Volunteers were recruited through various means including the BSA website, Speaking Out and BBC Southern Counties radio.

The results are briefly summarised below:

The respondents' experiences:
The respondents confirmed the importance of a sound therapeutic relationship characterised by empathy and acceptance. They also described the significance of other factors such as the counsellor's awareness of the issues that surround stammering, the active participation of the counsellor and group-work. A common element of the respondents' experiences was that they felt that counselling had altered their perspectives of their speech problems. This seemed to reduce the suffering felt by the respondents.

Counsellor's awareness of the issues that surround stammering
In order to work helpfully with an adult who stammers a counsellor needs to have an understanding of the issues that surround stammering. This includes an awareness of the benefits and limitations of the various treatments available as well as a heightened awareness of shame.

An active therapist
The study found that it can be helpful when the counsellor actively recognised and accepted their client's dysfluency. This needed to be handled respectfully and tentatively as befits a precious and yet [potentially] shameful facet of the client. Respondents found it helpful when counsellors offered them a different perspective on their dysfluency as long as this was done in a way that did not invalidate their experience.

The person of the counsellor
Respondents spoke of the counsellor's active expressions of their values, experience and knowledge.

Groupwork
The various forms of groupwork that the participants had used were found to be very effective. They provided safety, feedback and challenge.

I would like to thank everyone who was involved with the study. A lot of people were very generous with their time and resources. I would especially like to thank all of the volunteers who gave so much during the interview process. I would also like to apologise to everyone to whom I promised a copy of the findings. Unfortunately my computer broke down almost immediately after I had finished my dissertation and I lost all of my contacts and email addresses. If anyone is still interested in a copy of the findings please feel free to contact me on 01273 240483 or jonesd55@ntlworld.com

www.brightoncounselling.co.uk

From the Spring 2004 edition of Speaking Out