The treatment of elective mutism as stranger reaction.

Discusses the treatment of 15 preschool children with elective mutism (EM), which involves a fixation at or a regression to an earlier developmental stage when children typically exhibit stranger anxiety. It is suggested that the treatment of EM children should be determined by developmental considerations as well as etiological theories and that treatment should focus on unblocking of maturational processes. Treatment techniques and setting are described. Case examples illustrate that there were subtypes of EM children who were compliant and who were noncompliant and aggressively avoidant. The former responded to slow, psychodynamically oriented treatment and the latter responded to group therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)