View report page

Left-handedness was included in the survey but has not been shown to be associated
with stammer. A small number of children was reported as having been changed from
left-hand to right-hand and analysis suggests that such a change of laterality increases the
child's chances of stammering. An odd sidelight would seem to indicate that in the E.S.N,
schools a greater percentage of girls having speech therapy are left-handed than in
ordinary schools.
No evidence was found to suggest that children with parents, or one parent, of foreign
origin, i.e. non-English speaking, were more likely to suffer from speech defect. Language
difficulties exist, of course, in those children who normally speak some language other than
English at home; in some special schools the speech therapist is able to assist these children
to attain adequacy of English speech more rapidly than would otherwise have been possible.
An attempt to gather information about the home background was not successful,
mainly it would seem because only a limited number of questions was asked, each covering
too wide a field. It is still thought that there is valuable information to be obtained about
the relationships between a child's home background and speech, but it would need to be
the subject of a specially planned enquiry.
160