Selective Mutism in Children

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Selective Mutism in Children

Selective mutism is an acquired disorder, in which a child is capable of speaking, and does so in many instances, but fails to speak in select situations where communication will typically occur. (Book) Selective mutism implies that a child suffering from this disorder does not choose to be silent, but rather become mute in situations that cause him/her to be anxious. (4) One of the most important aspects of defining this disorder is that the failure to speak is not due to the child’s lack of knowledge of spoken language or a communication disorder, but rather the psychological aspects of socialization. (8) Tramer initially labeled the disorder “elective mutism” in 1934, a term that is still used outside of North America, and it was viewed as a defiant behavior to overprotective and/or controlling parent(s). (7) In 1994, American Psychiatric Association, renamed the disorder “Selective Mutism” since the title was more appropriate for emphasizing that a child becomes mute in select social situations and not when he/she chooses not to communicate.(7)
When exposed to new situations or overcoming a traumatic episode children often go through a phase of adjustment, where they may not speak for some period of time. (Book) This will not be termed selective mutism because of its course of development and etiology is different and will be managed in another way. (Book) Studies are still being conducted to figure out the minimum amount of time that a child has to be silent before he/she is diagnosed with selective mutism. For instance in a study by Brown and Lloyd, in 1975, came out with statistics regarding the number of children in school during their first year of school. (Book) When 6,072 children, that began the school year in silence, were observed started speaking with in a 32-40 week period. After an eight week period 42 children were silent, after 32 weeks 4 children and after 64 weeks only o...