How effective is child-centered play therapy?

Abstract

A variety of therapeutic interventions appear to be effective when used with children who are struggling with issues such as divorce, abuse, neglect, grief, family violence, and severe trauma. Due to the developmental differences between children and adults, children need an alternative approach to conventional talk therapy to meet their needs. Client-centered play therapy is a unique therapeutic process that allows the children to act out circumstances that are confusing, scary, and bothersome to them (Moustaka, 1973). The play therapist recognizes the child's wants, needs, behaviors, and feelings, which are expressed through play. Each toy selected by the child is a representation of what he/she is trying to communicate (Landreth, 2002). The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of child-centered play therapy. Sixteen elementary students from the Migisi Day Treatment program at Marriage and Family Health Services, Ltd, in Eau Claire and Mondovi, Wisconsin, voluntarily participated in the study. In the experimental group, each subject received an hour of client-centered play therapy, whereas subjects in the control group did not. The subject's behaviors were observed and rated by filling out the Behavior Rating Index for Children(BRIC) instrument, which inquiries about the subject's behavioral problems at a particular moment in time. In the control group, each subject's behaviors were observed and rated twice, with two hours in between each rating. In the experimental group, each subject's behaviors were observed and rated right before and an hour after their client-centered play therapy session. Independent sample t-tests were used in this study. Analysis the post-test scores of the BRICc suggested that for the subjects who received an hour of client-centered play therapy, their change score decreased by six points. For the subjects who did not receive an hour of client-centered play therapy, their change score elevated fifteen points. Also, the experimental subjects were less likely to quit a job or task without finishing it than those in the control group. Plus, the experimental subjects were less likely to cheat on games, activities, and written assignments compared to the subjects who were not exposed to an hour of child-centered play therapy. In the future, replication of this research with a wider pool of subjects perhaps internationally, using a pre-test post-test design, or exposing the experimental group to the client-centered play therapy for a longer period of time is recommended.