Leiden University Student Repository

Klaveren, Dirk-Jan van (2023)

Psychologisch en Sociaal welbevinden bij adolescenten met Selectief Mutisme: Een vergelijkingsonderzoek

Master thesis | Education and Child Studies (MSc)

Low quality of life can have an enormous impact on someone’s mental health. It can also withhold people with mental problems to recover. The aim of this study is to investigate the differences in social and psychological wellbeing between adolescents with and without selective mutism. Furthermore, the relationship between speaking behavior and the two wellbeing variables are investigated. Twenty-nine adolescents with selective mutism (f = 23, m= 6, mean age = 12,78) and 45 typical developing adolescents (f = 24, m= 21, mean age = 13.31) participated in this study. All the adolescents in the selective mutism group had a parent-reported diagnosis which presence was confirmed with the SMQ. Adolescents who were in (partial) remission were excluded. An online survey was send to the participants to collect the data for this study. The online survey consisted items from original questionnaires and items with questions about background information. Social- and psychological wellbeing is...Show moreLow quality of life can have an enormous impact on someone’s mental health. It can also withhold people with mental problems to recover. The aim of this study is to investigate the differences in social and psychological wellbeing between adolescents with and without selective mutism. Furthermore, the relationship between speaking behavior and the two wellbeing variables are investigated. Twenty-nine adolescents with selective mutism (f = 23, m= 6, mean age = 12,78) and 45 typical developing adolescents (f = 24, m= 21, mean age = 13.31) participated in this study. All the adolescents in the selective mutism group had a parent-reported diagnosis which presence was confirmed with the SMQ. Adolescents who were in (partial) remission were excluded. An online survey was send to the participants to collect the data for this study. The online survey consisted items from original questionnaires and items with questions about background information. Social- and psychological wellbeing is measured with the KIDSSCREEN-52 and speaking behavior is measured using the SMQ. Results showed that adolescents (10 – 18 years old) with selective mutism have lower psychological and social wellbeing than their typically developing peers. Furthermore, the presence of comorbid ASS above a diagnosis of selective mutism has a more negative impact on social wellbeing, but not psychological wellbeing, in comparison to adolescents with a single diagnosis selective mutism. Results have also shown that there is a positive relationship between the amount of difficulties in speaking behavior and social wellbeing but not for psychological wellbeing. These results implicate that adolescents with selective mutism have not only problems with expressing themselves in a verbal way but also experience a lower psychological and social quality of life than their typical developing peers. National Mental Health services should therefore not only pay attention to reducing the anxious behavior itself, but also look for ways to improve the psychological and social wellbeing of adolescents with selective mutism.Show less

Selectief Mutisme

Kwaliteit van Leven

Welbevinden

SMQ

KIDSCREEN-52

Author

Klaveren, Dirk-Jan van

Faculty

Faculty of Social & Behavioural Sciences

Specialisation

Orthopedagogiek

Supervisors

Nibbering, N.

ECTS Credits

20

Language

nl