We encourage them to use a slower and smoother rate of speech, and especially to listen to the child. In addition, parents should match their level of language to the child's and decrease the number of questions. The earlier the identification of a problem, the better, Keller said, noting the ideal age for treatment is 3 or 4 years old. While the cause of stuttering is ambiguous, Keller said, brain mapping techniques and genetics would play a role in learning more about stuttering in the future. One theory is that in stutterers, language function may be occurring in the right side of the brain rather than the left side.
Most people use the left side of the brain for language production and processing.
For people who stutter, Keller continued, using the right side of the brain may cause 'glitches' in the form of stutters because it is not well adapted to language. And stuttering may increase when the right side of the brain has to handle more than one task at a time. She emphasized that stress, traumatic events and parental pressure do not cause stuttering. Parents who place high demands on a child's speech by asking many questions or talking rapidly can exacerbate the problem, but it is not the cause of their stuttering.