Award Date

1-1-2003

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Psychology

First Committee Member

Christopher A. Kearney

Number of Pages

93

Abstract

To examine the relationship between selective mutism and anxiety, 15 children with selective mutism (SM) were compared to 15 children with anxiety disorders (AD) and a control group of 15 nonclinical children (CN). The study included children age 4--10 years and relied on information from multiple informants. Each participant was assessed by the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for Children for DSM-IV, Child Behavior Checklist, Teacher Report Form, Behavioral Style Questionnaire, and the Family Environment Scale. Results indicate that SM children closely resemble AD children. The SM and AD groups substantially differed from the CN group with regards to internalizing behavior problems. There were no differences among the groups with regards to externalizing behavior problems and reports of externalizing problems were low among all groups. 100% of SM children received a diagnosis of social phobia and 53% received an additional anxiety diagnosis. These results support that selective mutism is anxiety based.

Keywords

Mutism; Scared; Selective; Silent; Speak; Unwilling

Controlled Subject

Clinical psychology

File Format

pdf

File Size

2170.88 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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