Cluttering (also called tachyphemia) is a communicative disorder characterized by speech that is difficult for listeners to understand due to rapid speaking rate, erratic rhythm, poor syntax or grammar, and words or groups of words unrelated to the sentence. The person with cluttering may experience a short attention span, poor concentration, poorly organized thinking, inability to listen, and a lack of awareness that one's speech is unintelligible. The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (most commonly known by the abbreviation ICD) provides codes to classify diseases and a wide variety of signs, symptoms, abnormal findings, complaints, social circumstances and external causes of injury or disease. ... The following codes are used with International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems. ... The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (most commonly known by the abbreviation ICD) provides codes to classify diseases and a wide variety of signs, symptoms, abnormal findings, complaints, social circumstances and external causes of injury or disease. ... The following is a list of codes for International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems. ... A communication disorder is a disease or condition that partially or totally prevents human communication. ... For other uses, see Syntax (disambiguation). ... Attention span is the amount of time a person can concentrate on a single activity. ...

Cluttering is sometimes confused with stuttering. Both communication disorders break the normal flow of speech. However, while stuttering is a speech disorder, cluttering is a language disorder. In other words, a stutterer has a coherent pattern of thoughts, but can't say it; in contrast, a clutterer has no problem putting thoughts into words, but those thoughts become disorganized during speaking. Stuttering, also known as stammering in the United Kingdom, is a speech disorder in which the flow of speech is disrupted by involuntary repetitions and prolongations of sounds, syllables, words or phrases; and involuntary silent pauses or blocks in which the stutterer is unable to produce sounds. ... Speech disorders or speech impediments, as they are also called, are a type of communication disorders where normal speech is disrupted. ...

Stutterers are usually dysfluent on initial sounds, when beginning to speak, and become more fluent towards the ends of utterances. In contrast, clutterers are most clear at the start of utterances, but their speaking rate increases and intelligibility decreases towards the end of utterances.

Stuttering is characterized by struggle behavior, such as overtense speech production muscles. Cluttering, in contrast, is effortless.

To compare, a stutterer trying to say "I want to go to the store," might sound like "I wa-wa-want to g-g-go to the sssssssssstore." In contrast, a clutterer might say, "I want to go to the st...uh...place where you buy...market st-st-store."

Cluttering is also characterized by slurred speech, especially dropped or distorted /r/ and /l/ sounds; and monotone speech that starts loud and trails off into a murmur.

Clutterers often also have reading and writing disorders, especially sprawling, disorderly handwriting, which poorly integrate ideas and space.

A clutterer described the feeling associated with a clutter as:

Another clutterer wrote on an Internet support group:

Cluttering versus Stuttering

Cluttering and stuttering sound very similar to the lay ear, especially when they are at their worst. However, they are extremely different disorders and clutterers and stutterers are very different.

Stutterers:

• Are very aware of their disorder
• Perform worse when speaking under stress
• Have a hard time fluently giving short answers
• Have inhibited, neat handwriting
• Are fearful of their own speech
• Therapy focuses on relaxation techniques, calling attention away from speech
• Are typically withdrawn, shy, or introverted
• Typically were fluent, but then started stuttering
• Know exactly what they want to say but cannot say it
• Have organized speech
• Have good listening skills

Clutterers:

• Are very unaware of their disorder
• Perform better when speaking under stress
• Have a hard time fluently giving long answers
• Have hasty, repetitious, uninhibited, messy handwriting
• Have little to no fear of their speech and are careless in speech
• Therapy focuses on calling attention to speech details
• Are typically outgoing or extroverted
• Typically were never very fluent
• Do not know exactly what they want to say, but say it anyway
• Have disorganized, tangential, grammatically incorrect speech with word substitutions
• Are impatient listeners, frequently interrupt, and have poor turn-taking skills in conversation

Treatment

Because clutterers have poor awareness of their disorder, they may be indifferent or even hostile to speech-language pathologists. Treatment for cluttering usually takes longer than stuttering treatment. Delayed auditory feedback (DAF) is usually used to produce a more deliberate, exaggerated oral-motor response pattern. Other treatment components include improving narrative structure with story-telling picture books, turn-taking practice, pausing practice, and language therapy. Delayed auditory feedback (DAF), is a device that contains both a speaker and headphones. ...

History

Battaros was a legendary Libyan king who spoke quickly and in a disorderly fashion. Others who spoke as he did were said to suffer from battarismus.^[2] This is the earliest record of the speech disorder of cluttering.

In the 1960's, cluttering was called tachyphemia. Tachyphemia is derrived from "fast speech." This word is currently not used to describe cluttering because fast speech is a common, yet not a required element of cluttering.

Deso Weiss described cluttering as the outward manifestation of a "central language imbalance." In Weiss's book on cluttering, he used Central Language Imbalance or CLI as synonymous with what cluttering is described as today.

Over the past twenty years, Kenneth O. St. Louis, Lawrence J. Raphael, Florence L. Myers, and Klaas Bakker have been working to standardize a definition of cluttering. Judith Kuster maintains a robust section of cluttering resources and articles in her Stuttering Homepage^[3]. Judith Maginnis Kuster, aka Judith A. Kuster, is a certified speech-language pathologist and professor in the Department of Speech, Hearing and Rehabilitation Services at Minnesota State University, Mankato. ...

The first conference to be held specifically on cluttering is scheduled for May of 2007^[4].

Famous Clutterers

Weiss claimed that Battaros, Demosthenes, Pericles, Justinian, Bismarck, and Winston Churchill were clutterers. He says about these people, "Each of these contributors to world history viewed his world wholistically, and was not deflected by exaggerated attention to small details. Perhaps then, they excelled because of, rather than in spite of, their [cluttering]." Cluttering (also called tachyphemia) is a communicative disorder characterized by speech that is difficult for listeners to understand due to rapid speaking rate, erratic rhythm, poor syntax or grammar, and words or groups of words unrelated to the sentence. ... Demosthenes (384–322 BC, Greek: Δημοσθένης, Dēmosthénēs) was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. ... Pericles or Perikles (c. ... Justinian may refer to: Justinian I, a Roman Emperor; Justinian II, a Byzantine Emperor; Justinian, a storeship sent to the convict settlement at New South Wales in 1790. ... Alternate meanings: See Bismarck (disambiguation). ... Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC (Can) (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was an English statesman, soldier, and author. ...

See also

• Stuttering
• Lisp
• Dyslexia
• Speech processing
• Voice disorders
• Attention deficit disorder
• Apraxia

Stuttering, also known as stammering in the United Kingdom, is a speech disorder in which the flow of speech is disrupted by involuntary repetitions and prolongations of sounds, syllables, words or phrases; and involuntary silent pauses or blocks in which the stutterer is unable to produce sounds. ... A lisp is a speech impediment. ... It has been suggested that Reading Difficulties and Dyslexia be merged into this article or section. ... Speech processing is the study of speech signals and the processing methods of these signals. ... Voice disorders are medical conditions affecting the production of speech. ... DISCLAIMER Please remember that Wikipedia is offered for informational use only. ... Apraxia is a neurological disorder characterized by loss of the ability to execute or carry out learned (familiar) movements, despite having the desire and the physical ability to perform the movements. ...

Cluttering researchers

Cluttering research is still in its infancy. Cluttering research peaked and faded away in the 1960's, but interest in cluttering research has drastically increased and there are numerous books on cluttering that are currently being written. Because of this renewed interest in cluttering, the current cluttering researchers are pioneers in this speech disorder. Most of the cluttering researchers were stuttering researchers who studdied cluttering as a secondary behavior, however there are a few dedicated cluttering researchers. The most notable of the cluttering researchers are:

• Deso Weiss
• David Daly
• Charles Van Riper
• Florence Myers
• Kenneth St. Louis
• Klaas Bakker
• Judith Kuster
• Katerina de Hirsch
• Alf Preus
• Lawrence Raphael

David A. Daly (born 1941 in Michigan) is a fluency author, researcher, and center owner. ... Judith Maginnis Kuster, aka Judith A. Kuster, is a certified speech-language pathologist and professor in the Department of Speech, Hearing and Rehabilitation Services at Minnesota State University, Mankato. ... Lawrence J. Raphael (born) is a professor in the Communications Sciences and Disorders department at Adelphi University in New York City, New York. ...

References

1. ^ Reyes-Alami, C.. Interview with a Person who Clutters. Retrieved on 2006 January 1.
2. ^ Weiss, Deso (1964). Cluttering. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1. LC 64-25326. 
3. ^ Judith Kuster. Other related fluency disorders. Retrieved on 2007 March 28.
4. ^ First World Conference on Cluttering. Retrieved on 2007 March 28.

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (88th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (88th in leap years). ...

Sources

• St. Louis, K. O., Raphael, L. J., Myers, F. L., & Bakker, K. (2003, Nov. 18). Cluttering updated. The ASHA Leader, pp. 4-5, 20-22.
• Weiss, Deso A. Cluttering (Foundations of speech pathology series). Prentice-Hall (1964)
• Studies in Tachyphemia, An Investigation of Cluttering and General Language Disability. Speech Rehabilitation Institute. New York, 1963.
• Daly, D. A. (1996). The source for stuttering and cluttering. East Moline, IL: LinguiSystems.
• Myers, F. and K. St. Louis, (1992) Cluttering: A Clinical Perspective, Leicester, England: Far Communications

External links

• Cluttering: Some Guidelines
• Overview of Cluttering
• Interview with a Person who Clutters
• ASHA Cluttering Updated Article
• ISAD presentation on cluttering experience
• Computer Aided Assessment of Cluttering Severity