What is Selective Mutism?

Selective Mutism is characterized by a child's refusal to speak in certain situations despite their ability to speak in other situations.  The most common types of Selective Mutism is when a child refuses to speak to anyone outside of their immediate family or when they are outside their home.  Children with Selective Mutism often find other ways to communicate such as gesturing, pointing, or nodding. 

A child who does not speak primarily due to a speech impediment or unfamiliarity with the language is not considered selectively mute.  However, some children with Selective Mutism do have speech impediments.  

Selective Mutism usually begins before the age of 6 but can begin later. It often becomes most problematic when a child begins school.  Selective Mutism often causes severe impairment academically and socially, in that the child is unable to function in school or social situations due to their refusal to verbally communicate. 
 

How is Selective Mutism treated?

When a child refuses to speak in public, it often causes socially awkward or embarrassing situations. Parents of children with Selective Mutism understand their children's wants and needs and usually end up speaking for them.  While this alleviates the social awkwardness of most situations, it also serves to reinforce their child's non-speaking behavior. Therefore, the first step in treatment is to work with parents to help them deal with the discomfort created by their child's refusal to speak and to stop them from speaking for their child.

Treatment with the child involves basic behavioral techniques of implementing rewards and consequences.  In session, the child is encouraged to speak and verbalizations are reinforced. Planned ignoring is used when a child tries to communicate without talking. As the child begins to talk to the therapist in session, this behavior is expanded to other areas of their life.