When a Child Won’t Speak
If SHYNESS or SELECTIVE MUTISM?
a young child talks freely and enthusiastically at home
but has difficulty verbalizing with non-family mem-
bers in public or social settings, she may be classified
as a child who is shy, reluctant to speak or one who has
special needs. However, there’s another possibility.

The non-speaking child may have selective mutism,
a little-known anxiety disorder that arises in the
preschool years around three to five-years-old.

Though with good intentions, parents and educa-
tors are unable to properly evaluate children who don’t
speak. They often implement a non-pressure approach
allowing children to communicate at their own pace
and comfort level. This wait-and-see approach only
exacerbates the problem and results in misunder-
standings and misclassifications which ultimately
affect the child. To prevent non-speaking children
from suffering unnecessarily, it is best for parents and
educators to work in tandem to educate themselves on
the differences in a child’s speech habits.

22 WashingtonFAMILY JUNE 2019
What is the D ifference Between
Shyness and Selective Mutism?
According to Fairfax-based licensed clinical psychol-
ogist Dr. Courtney Ferenz, “selective mutism (SM) is
an anxiety disorder, characterized by a lack of verbal
communication in specific settings.” Dr. Ferenz states
that parents describe children with SM as having a
dual personality by being “talkative at home but very
quiet or virtually silent in other settings.”
By contrast, “shyness is a personality trait, which is …
fixed and affect[s] one’s general temperament,” accord-
ing to Alexandria-based licensed clinical psychologist
Dr. Kristin Swanson. While shy children typically over-
come their inability to speak with others by warming up
a bit, the warm-up period does not work with children
who have SM. “In fact, the longer a child spends in an
environment without speaking, the harder it can be to
begin using their voice,” Dr. Swanson says.

GETTY IMAGES/PHOTODISC/DIGITAL VISION.

BY AMANDA SOCCI