title: Social Communication Anxiety Treatment (S-CAT) for children and families with selective mutism: A pilot study.
abstract: This research assessed the feasibility of Social Communication Anxiety Treatment (S-CAT) developed by Elisa Shipon-Blum, a brief multimodal approach, to increase social communication in 40 children aged 5-12 years with selective mutism (SM). SM is a disorder in which children consistently fail to speak in specific situations although they have the ability to do so. Key features of this approach are the SM-Social Communication Comfort Scale (SCCS), transfer of control (ToC), a nonchalant therapeutic style, and cognitive-behavioral strategies over a brief time frame. Following 9 weeks of treatment, children showed significant gains in speaking frequency on all 17 items from the Selective Mutism Questionnaire (SMQ), a standardized measure of SM severity. Children also showed decreased levels of anxiety and withdrawal as reported by parents on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). SM initial symptom severity and family therapy compliance, but not duration of SM, contributed to treatment outcomes.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, La Salle University, USA.
authors.forename: Evelyn R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Klein
authors.affiliation: 2 Department of Psychology, La Salle University, USA.
authors.forename: Sharon Lee
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Armstrong
authors.affiliation: 3 Selective Mutism Research Institute, USA.
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Skira
authors.affiliation: 3 Selective Mutism Research Institute, USA.
authors.forename: Janice
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gordon
mesh_terms: D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D003142:Communication; D005196:Family Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009155:Mutism / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D012919:Social Behavior; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Selective mutism; anxiety; children; communication; treatment