Scientists Tormented 22 Orphans for an Experiment

[!NOTE] Historical File: Scientists Tormented 22 Orphans for an Experiment Location: USA | Era: Archival History | Format: Documentary & Narrative Record

The Untold Story

In 1939, speech pathology researchers in Iowa began a secret psychological experiment on twenty-two orphaned children.

Half the children were praised, while the other half were relentlessly criticized and told their speech was broken.

The targeted orphans were completely healthy before, but soon developed severe stutters and extreme psychological anxiety.

The Monster Study (1939) • 22 healthy orphans in Iowa • Relentlessly told their speech was defective • Caused lifelong trauma and stutters

Even after researchers realized the damage was permanent, they never provided therapy or told the children they were part of a study.

Terrified of public outrage after World War Two, the university kept the findings hidden for sixty years—a dark legacy of a forgotten experiment.

Historical Discussion

💭 The experiment was dubbed ‘The Monster Study’ by Wendell Johnson’s own peers because they were horrified he used defenseless orphans as test subjects. In 2007, sixty-eight years after the experiment, the State of Iowa paid $925,000 to settle lawsuits brought by the surviving victims.

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