Play therapy is a form of therapy that typically involves children engaging in playtime that is observed by a clinician that allows them to see the child’s unresolved trauma, stress, emotions, and mental health issues. There are various types of play therapy that include child-based play therapy, family-based play therapy, and group-based therapy. Each form of play therapy follows with their own benefits and disadvantages. However, one form of play therapy may be more effective towards one disorder than another. These types of play therapy can have differing effects on disorders such as anxiety disorders, ADHD, and ASD.
Play therapy contains a broad range of forms that can be efficiently used in tailored disorders. Child-based play therapy is therapy that exclusively involves only a therapist and the child in counseling. A wide array of toys, games, action figures, puppets are offered for the child to find which object most closely resonates with them and identifies with their feelings. There are two approaches to child-based play therapy in which there is directed and non-directed play. Directed play is the instance in which the therapist provides a prompt or a specific activity they would like the child to focus on. While non-directed play therapy allows the child to freely pick and choose which toys or games they want to play with and choose however these objects interact with another. The child is given no prompt on how to play. While the child is engaging in either directed or non-directed play therapy, the therapist is observing the child and taking notes (Swank, 2015).
Family-based play therapy uses a similar form of play therapy for the child however the entire family is invited to play with the child. This involves the child, the parents, the siblings, and the therapist still observing the interaction of playing. By instigating the whole family to play, this encourages the child to participate and helps the therapist see and understand clear or underlying family dynamics. The verbal or non-verbal communication seen between the child and each family member reveals more to the child’s trauma or disorder. Family-based play therapy can strengthen relationships the child has with either an individual member of the family or with the family as a whole (Willis, 2013). Group-based play therapy involves instructing a collective group of children who may be experiencing similar stress, trauma, or disorders to interact and play with one another. This group is still under observation by a licensed therapist. This type of play therapy healthily pushes adolescents to expand and increase their social interaction skills, form connections with other children their age, and form secure attachments. Group play therapy is shown to be most effective in settings with consistent interaction amongst children and adolescents such as school settings (Allen, 2015).
Play therapy involves various forms of therapy such as child-based play therapy, family-based play therapy, and group-based therapy. Each of these forms have their individual benefits and drawback. Child-based therapy is most effective when to identify solely the child’s trauma, stress, or disorder. Family-based play therapy is efficient at identifying the underlying or distressed family structures or individual family member relationships with the child to assess how the dynamics negatively affect the child. Group-based play therapy is most helpful to connect children experiencing similar trauma, disorders, or stress. Specific disorders such as ADHD, ASD, and anxiety disorders have all shown to be positively affected by the use of play therapy as it lessens the negative symptoms associated with these disorders. Play therapy is an effective method to reduce anxiety, stress, and a lack of skills a child may struggle in various disorders.