 Little Hans – first published case of play in child treatment by Sigmund Freud o Psychological disturbance – horse phobia o Prevailing belief about childhood disorders – deficiencies in: Education Training  Melanie Klein o In 1919, she employed techniques of play to analyze children under the age of 6, conceptualizing play as a child form of free association  Anna Freud o Also developed play techniques as a way of establishing a positive relationship with child, not privileging interpretation of the unconscious

 Hermine Hug-Hellmuth (1921) o First published paper on play technique with children  Release play therapy – David Levy (1938) o Structured play therapy No interpretation Goal – abreaction through moving out of passive role into active role o Three types of release Aggressive behavior Release of feelings in conflictual situations such as sibling rivalry Release of feelings by recreating in play a particular stressful experience in child’s life o Techniques have much in common with exposure therapy

 Relationship play therapy o Based on the work of Otto Rank (1936), a former disciple of Sigmund Freud and a colleague of Sandor Ferenczi Focus on therapeutic relationship Focus on here and now o Curative ingredient – therapeutic relationship o Child-directed play Children have innate inner strength Children have capacity to alter their behaviors constructively Focus is on child’s concerns rather than therapist’s

 Nondirective/Child-centered play therapy o Virginia Axline – Student of Carl Rogers No effort to change child Child changes on own if he or she feels completely accepted (foreshadows dialectic) If therapist can accept all child’s feelings and thoughts, then child can accept them, too Concept of nondirective play therapy: “A play experience is therapeutic because it provides a secure relationship between the child and the adult, so that the child has the freedom and room to state himself in his own terms, exactly as he is at that moment in his own way and in his own time” (Axline, 1950, p.68). Establishment of a secure base for child Freedom to explore one’s own thoughts and feelings Integration of attachment theory and child-centered play therapy

 Play in elementary schools o Help for maladjusted children o Help for all children to get ready to profit from learning experiences offered – maximize opportunities Group play therapy Sociodramatic play (e.g., storytelling/story-acting activity [STSA activity])  Founding of Association for Play Therapy in 1982 o Charles Schaefer – Farleigh-Dickinson University o Garry Landreth – University of North Texas

 Filial therapy o Training parents in child-centered play therapy skills o Four components of filial therapy Didactic instruction Demonstration play sessions At-home laboratory play sessions Supervision in a supportive atmosphere o 10-session Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT)  Other forms of play therapy o Adult play therapy o Family play therapy o Cognitive-behavioral play therapy o Group play therapy o Hospital-based play therapy

 Tenets for relating to children o Children are not miniature adults o Children are people o Children are unique and worthy of respect o Children are resilient o Children have an inherent tendency toward growth and maturity o Children are capable of positive self-direction o Children’s natural language is play o Children have the right to remain silent o Children will take the therapeutic experience to where they need to be o Children’s growth cannot be speeded up

 Children are resilient o What accounts for some children’s success and healthy adjustment in spite of having inadequate caregivers and childrearing environments (multifinality)? o Differences in how some children experience and process what goes on around them o Self-confident children have been allowed considerable self- direction o Children are constantly developing and must be treated with an equally dynamic therapeutic approach

 Appreciating individual differences among children o Impulsive, high-energy children o Cautious, low-energy children o Fast-developing children o Slow-developing children o For all types of children, the therapist must wait patiently for the child to discover his or her unique self – the child already possesses these qualities necessary for growing and becoming a well-adjusted person