From: Klaas Bakker, MSU, Springfield MO.
Date: 16 Apr 2010
Time: 06:27:53 -0500
Remote Name: 173.22.193.98
Good question and I am glad you used the term suspect as there are not sufficient data. My suspicion is that the incidence will turn out to be quite comparable across countries, cultures and languages in a similar way as stuttering. I need to add to this that what is the incidence of cluttering is somewhat difficult to answer for several reasons: 1. We need to agree on what we count as cluttering. 2. Do we include individuals who both clutter and stutter? My suspicion is that the number of people who do both may exceed the number of people who clutter exclusively. 3. Does a culture recognize cluttering enough to have a word for it, and as a result an established literature. More information and thoughts about this issues are expressed in the paper by Chris Wilkerson and me elsewhere in this conference. 4. FInally, my suspicion is that the number of individuals who clutter, once it is known, may be greater than thought before because there are reasons why people who clutter may not enter treatment, leave treatment too early, or are not recognized as needing treatment in early years (like would be the case for stuttering). I realize this is already a pretty long answer but there is much more to say about this important issue as the number of people who can be identified as having a cluttering problem is related to the need for treatment and recognition of this need by our specialization. There is a danger that cluttering is "under recognized" and thus "under served". Others?