New research suggests that stuttering may be associated with rhythm perception.

Researchers at Michigan State University found that children who have a stutter, or a speech disorder in which "sounds, syllables, or words are repeated or prolonged, disrupting the normal flow of speech," have difficulty perceiving a beat in music-like rhythms. This could explain their halting speech patterns.

"Stuttering has primarily been interpreted as a speech motor difficulty, but this is the first study that shows it's related to a rhythm perception deficit -- in other words, the ability to perceive and keep a beat," Devin McAuley, co-author of the study and professor of psychology, said in a statement. "That's important because it identifies potential interventions which might focus on improving beat perception in children who stutter, which then might translate to improved fluency in speech."

For the study, researchers collected and analyzed data from a group of children who stuttered and a group who didn't by having them listen to and then identify rhythmic drumbeats in the context of a computer game. Even after taking into account the kids' IQs and language abilities, the study found that children who stuttered did much worse at judging whether two rhythms were the same or different.

Researchers said that being able to perceive and maintain a beat is "critical for normal speech because it serves as a pacing signal." Previous research has shown that speech fluency improves dramatically for adults who stutter when speaking in time with a metronome.

Stuttering affects 70 million people worldwide.

The findings are detailed in the journal Brain and Language.