U. of Iowa Apologizes for Decades-Old Study That Forced Orphans to Stutter

Following a newspaper exposé this week, the University of Iowa apologized on Wednesday for an experiment directed by one of its leading researchers more than 60 years ago in which orphans were deliberately taught to stutter.

The study involved 22 orphans, half of whom were psychologically pressured to stutter. The research was designed by the late Wendell Johnson, a groundbreaking scientist in speech pathology for whom the university’s speech and hearing clinic is named.

Researchers were trying to prove Mr. Johnson’s theory that stuttering was not genetic but rather socially induced. Their aim was to find a cure for stuttering, but a number of the children involved in the study suffered lifelong speech disorders. The university’s apology followed a report on the experiment by the San Jose Mercury News..

Some of Mr. Johnson’s graduate students began calling the study the “Monster Experiment” or “Monster Study,” because neither the employees of the orphanage nor the children involved were ever informed what was really happening.

Describing the experiment as “regrettable,” the university’s statement of apology said that strict policies now in place ensure that “experiments of this nature cannot happen again.”

University officials say they will not rename the Wendell Johnson Speech and Hearing Center, which is one of the leading institutes for speech pathology and audiology in the nation. The center was founded in 1968 in honor of Mr. Johnson, who died three years earlier.

“In no way does his excellent reputation and other good work change the fact that this was a regrettable study,” said David J. Skorton, vice president for research at the university. “But we do continue to recognize his excellence as a practitioner and teacher of speech pathology, and the excellence of the program he built.”