2022 Volume 14 Issue 1 Pages 47-55
This study aimed to develop the Japanese Version of the Selective Mutism Questionnaire (SMQ-J), a psychometric scale designed to assess speaking behavior in children with selective mutism (SM), and examine its reliability and validity. We conducted translated versions of SMQ and CBCL/4-18 with 139 parents and carers of children with SM ages 4 to 12. An exploratory factor analysis revealed a four-factor structure: “Social settings,” “Family-related settings,” “School settings (classmate),” and “School settings (teacher),” whereas a three-factor structure (wherein the two “School settings” factors were combined) was reported by the original authors. The reliabilities of the subscales were confirmed. Additionally, the criterion-related validity was confirmed via a comparison with 101 parents of children collected as a control group by Tomioka (2016). Furthermore, an examination of the relationship between SMQ-J and CBCL/4-18 revealed that the discriminant validity was well supported, however, the relationship between the severity of SM and anxiety was not clearly shown. These findings demonstrated the reliability and validity of the SMQ-J, suggesting that it can be applied as an effective tool in the assessment of speaking behavior in children with SM.
