Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 12, 2026
05:48
Memorization-Based Training and Testing Paradigm for Robust Vocal Identity Recognition in Expressive Speech Using Event-Related Potentials Analysis
Published on: August 9, 2024
Identity and stammering: negotiating hesitation, side-stepping repetition, and sometimes avoiding deviation
1Newcastle University Business School, Newcastle University.
Sociology of Health & Illness
|April 5, 2013
Summary
People who stammer often hide their speech dysfluency to manage social stigma. This study reveals how they strategically use social spaces and interactions to navigate identity challenges related to stammering.
Area of Science:
- Sociology
- Linguistics
- Psychology
Background:
- Speech dysfluency, such as stammering, often leads to social stigmatization due to deviations from communicative norms.
- Individuals managing stigmatized characteristics face challenges in identity work and social integration.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore identity work strategies employed by individuals experiencing intermittent speech dysfluency (stammering).
- To investigate how social space is utilized in managing the stigma associated with stammering.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative research employing focus groups and semi-structured interviews.
- Analysis of participants' self-reported management approaches to their stammer.
Main Results:
- Participants reported strategies including concealment, involving others, role-playing, and self-segregation.
- The study identified specific uses of social space: as a hiding place, a site for the stammer, a gap for word switching, and an area for performance.
Conclusions:
- Individuals develop complex, often hidden, identity work strategies to manage the social stigma of stammering.
- The strategic use of social space is a key element in negotiating identity and mitigating discrediting in the context of speech dysfluency.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Impression Management Techniques III: Aligning Actions
Aligning actions are communicative strategies individuals employ to maintain social harmony and preserve personal identity in the face of potential disruptions to social norms. These actions are particularly important in managing social impressions when one's behavior might be seen as inappropriate, incompetent, or morally questionable.Types of Aligning ActionsThe three principal types of aligning actions are disclaimers, accounts, and apologies.DisclaimersDisclaimers are preventive; they are...
02:05Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
People can go to great lengths to protect their self-image and present themselves in ways that they want others to see them. Sociologist Erving Goffman presented the idea that a person is like an actor on a stage. Calling his theory dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use “impression management” to present ourselves to others as we hope to be perceived. Each situation is a new scene, and individuals perform different roles depending on who is present (Goffman, 1959). Think about the way you...
01:14Frustration and Conflict: Avoidance-Avoidance, Double-Approach Avoidance
Avoidance-avoidance conflict refers to a psychological situation where a person must choose between two or more unpleasant alternatives. These conflicts are particularly stressful because neither option is desirable. This dilemma is often expressed in sayings like "caught between a rock and a hard place" or "between the devil and the deep blue sea." For instance, individuals who fear dental procedures may find themselves torn between enduring a painful toothache or facing the anxiety of...
01:29Processes of Self-Presentation
Effective self-presentation is a central component of social interaction and identity construction. It relies on the dynamic processes of defining the situation and engaging in self-disclosure. These mechanisms help individuals navigate social context expectations and manage how others perceive them, fostering mutual understanding and relationship development.Defining the SituationSocial situations are shaped by collectively understood frames—a set of widely understood rules or conventions...
01:14Impression Management Techniques IV: Altercasting
Altercasting is a strategic communication technique in which an individual imposes a specific identity or social role onto another person to influence their behavior and shape the interaction. By presuming a role—such as “responsible leader” or “patient person”—altercasting encourages the target to conform to that identity, often aligning their behavior with the expectations associated with the role. The power of this tactic lies in its subtlety; once a role is assigned, it becomes socially...
01:12Strategies of Self-Presentation I: Strategic Self-Presentation
Strategic self-presentation refers to individuals' intentional efforts to influence how others perceive them. This process is employed in various social and professional settings, such as job interviews, dating, politics, and legal contexts, where individuals seek to shape impressions to gain social or material advantages. While people generally present themselves in ways that align with their authentic characteristics, external factors, such as cognitive load, can hinder their ability to...