AFP: Stutter risk from early bilingualism

研究：五歲前兒童使用雙語 口吃比例較高

PARIS - CHILDREN who are bilingual before the age of five are more likely to stutter than non-bilingual counterparts and also find it harder to shed this impediment, according to a British study published on Tuesday.(法新社巴黎 九日電） 根據一份今天發布的研究結果顯示，兒童在五歲前使用雙語，比使用單一語言的兒童更容易出現口吃，同時也較難克服。The research was conducted among 317 London children who were referred to a speech therapist when they were aged between eight and 10.這項研究以三百一十七名倫敦兒童為研究對象，他們年齡在八歲到十歲間，都曾接受語言治療師的口吃治療。One in five of the stutterers were bilingual, speaking English at school and a second language at home. Boys outnumbered girls by a ratio of four to one.報告指出，有五分之一口吃兒童使用雙語，在學校用英文，回到家使用另一種語言。其中男生數目高於女生，約為四比一。The study, headed by psychologist Peter Howell of University College London, appears in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, published by the British Medical Association (BMA).這份由倫敦大學學院心理學家郝爾所做的研究，刊登在英國 醫藥協會所發行的「兒童疾病檔案」期刊中。It found that stuttering, bilingual children usually stutter in both languages, rather than just one.研究發現，有口吃現象的雙語兒童，用兩種語言都會口吃，不限於一種語言。By concentrating on the minority language up to the age of five, and then acquiring English, the risk of stuttering is reduced and overcoming the problem is easier, the study proposes.Starting English somewhat later, and learning it at the same time as the minority language, does not affect educational success, according to tests on children at the age of seven and 11, it said. -- AFP報告建議，如果在五歲以前集中使用次要語言，之後再增加使用英語，可以降低口吃的風險，也比較容易克服口吃。