How Do People Who Stutter Experience Ableist Microaggressions? A Mixed Methods Exploratory Study

People Who Stutter (PWS) can experience considerable social stigma. Stuttering has generally been understood as a disorder that is best addressed through helping PWS to alter stuttered speech. Recently, new lines of inquiry inspired by disability theory are turning attention towards the systems of privilege that uphold fluency and marginalise dysfluency. Taking up these commitments, this paper presents findings from an exploratory online survey that aimed to understand the nature and frequency of ableist microaggressions perceived by PWS. Overall, participants reported encountering microaggressions frequently. Our thematic analysis of participants’ descriptions of stuttering microaggression experiences highlights the mundane and diminishing nature of these interactions, and the power differential that exists between PWS and non-stutterers. We identify an urgent need to challenge ableist constructions of dysfluent speech as deficit.