DARE TO ASK: Did we hear you say teens mumble?

By PHILLIP MILANO, The Times-Union

Question

Why do teenagers mumble all the time?

Renea, 45, Orange Park

Replies

Because being articulate went the way of being neatly dressed. Many teenagers think it isn't cool to speak clearly and intelligently, the same way they do not think it is cool to wear pants that fit them properly.

Johanna, 45, Stroudsburg, Penn.

Teen years are awkward, with all the pressure to "find yourself" and manage puberty. Mumbling teenagers probably have under-developed social skills. And of course many try to deal with themselves and the world by "disengaging." In that case the mumblers probably don't know or care that they're mumbling because it all doesn't matter. The "disengaged" image is cool to some of them.

Teresa, 20, Macomb, Ill.

I never mumble. If I have something to say, I say it loud and proud! Mumbling is a way to say something out loud without it being understood. It's a way of saying something you wish you could really say.

Luke, a teen, Denver

Some do it because they're unsure whether they want others to hear what they're saying, possibly out of fear that the listener's response might be negative. It also might be a sneaky way of bothering whoever's listening.

Mike, Chicago

Teens who mumble might not realize they do it. I have a tendency to do so, and I'm 24. The misconception that if you can hear it yourself, everyone can, could be a cause.

Andy, Fenton, Mich.

Expert says

Turns out all this burbling by adolescents might actually be a rite of passage - a product of our natural development.

"Researchers say Mother Nature may have worked this out well," says Doris Bucher, a speech pathologist with Speakeasy communication consultants in Atlanta.

"The mumbling comes along right about the time a teen's voice becomes rather fragile. You might notice that sometimes teens with a lot of talent, who sing or talk too much, develop a peculiar voice from the strain. It can be a result of damage to the vocal chords."

In addition, psychologically, teens are trying to pull away from the adult world that controls them and identify with their peers, and swallowing one's words is a way to detach, Bucher said.

"A good test to see if there's a problem is to watch how they talk with their friends," because chances are they enunciate just fine with their peers.

Kids start pulling away as teens because they get second-guessed a lot, she added. Parents would do well to turn up the positive reinforcement.

"There's a lot of power in articulation. If you want your ideas taken seriously, you form words clearly . . . but what if you don't have final power in the situation?"

The good news, experts say: Mumbling often stops with entrance into college or the "real world," whichever comes first.

Phillip Milano, author of I Can't Believe You Asked That! (Perigee), moderates cross-cultural dialogue at Y? The National Forum on People's Differences. Visit www.yforum.com to submit questions and answers, or mail to Phillip Milano, c/o The Florida Times-Union, P.O. Box 1949, Jacksonville, FL 32231. Include contact information. For Dare to Ask podcasts, go to Jacksonville.com keyword: milano.