Analog of Adult Capacity to Work

8/13/2019 Analog of Adult Capacity to Work

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C h i l d h o o d P l a y a s a n A n a l o g t o A d u l t C a p a c i t y t o W o r k

N a n c y S . C o t t on P h DH a r v a r d M e d i c a l S c h o o l

A B S T R A C T :This paper presents a theoretical model that proposes the continuity be-tween childhood play and adul t work. A developmental perspect ive is used to describethe complex transformatio ns that take place turning an inf ant s behavior into adultwork. Four childhood analogs to adult work are described. The thesis of the paper istha t childhood play is the m ajor arena in which these analogs develop. The arena of playcan be characterized by four characteristics that facilitate the development of theanalogs to adult work: (1) play provides the oppor tuni ty for children to learn, develop,and perfect new skills that build c o m p e t e n c e ; (2) play is t he child s natur al mode tomaster anxiety from overwhelming experiences of everyday life, which builds thec a p a c i t y to c o p e w i t h t h e e n v i r o n m e n t ;(3) play helps build the ego s capacity to mediatebetween unconscious and conscious realities, which enhances e g o s t r e n g t h ; and (4) playrepeat s or confirms a grat ifyi ng experience that fuels a child s i n v e s t m e n t i n l ife

T h e d e v e l o p m e n t a l p e r s p e c t iv e a s s u m e s t h a t t h e r e is c o n t i n u i t y be -t w e e n t h e a c t i v i t ie s o f c h il d h o o d a n d a d u l t f u n c t i o n in g . L o n g i t u d i n a ls t ud i e s o f behav i o r, a t t i t ud e s , an d pe r son a l i t y show th a t c apac i t ie sand s t r uc t u r e s a t l a te r d eve lop m en ta I s t age s a r e c l o se ly r e l a ted t o , b u t

o f t en d i f f e r en t f r om, t he beh a v io r s o f e a r li er le s s m a tu r e s t age s . U s in gth i s d e v e lopm en ta l pe r s pec t i ve , t h i s p a pe r w i ll ou t l i n e a ch i l d sa n a l o g s t o adu l t wo rk capac i t y. The t h e s i s o f t h i s pape r i s t ha tc h i l d h ood p l ay i s t he ma jo r a r ena i n wh ich t he se ana logs deve lop . The

r e n w i l l b e de sc r i bed gene ra l l y and fou r spec i f i c cha r ac t e r i s t i c s o fp l ay w i l l be e l abo ra t ed t ha t l e ad i n to fou r ch i l dhood an a logs o f adu l tw ork ca p ac i t y.

Nancy S. Cotton is Instructor in Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, CambridgeHospital, Harv ard Medical School, D irector of Child Psychia try Inpa tien t Service, NewEngland Memorial Hospital, Stoneham, Massachusetts.

A revised version of a paper presented at the Symposium: Work and Development,held during the 1980 annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, SanFrancisco, California.

Chi ld Psy ch ia t ry and Hu m an D eve lop men t , VoL 14 ,3 ), Spr in g 19849 1984 Huma n Sciences Press 13 5


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36 Child Psychia try a n d H u m a n e v e lo p m e n t

T h e r e n a o f P l a y

The arena of play initia lly includes all of childhood activities. Thereis an intrinsic pleasure in activity which motivates a child's ac-t i on -wh en a child does something for the sake of doing it. 1 Withdevelopment a gradual differentiation of childhood ction occurs,result ing in behaviors th at are more clearly labeled as play a nd work inadults.

The distinction between work and play is an adul t conception. It isonly with maturat ion and development that the child begins to make

this distinction. For example: Last summer, friends of ours asked theirfour-year-old child to summar ize what he liked mos t about his week-long vacation with us on Martha 's Vineyard. He replied, Doing thelaun dry with Paul, which he had done daily, sometimes opting for thelau ndr y in lieu of the beach.

The distinction between work and play is made by the child when heenters school. The differentiation of the child's life into school ac-tivities and after-school activities represents the first childhoodrepresenta tion of play. Concrete operational tho ugh t selects concretecriteria for this distinction during this developmental period.

People have questioned whether children work; however, no onequestions wh ether children play. Erikson has described childhood playas the child's work. ~ Rather than debating whether children work orplay, it is more useful to consider play the child's characterist ic modeof behavior '3 and to look for the work within the play. Plaut hasdefined adult work as act ivi ty producing something useful orvaluable --in t erms of goods or services. '4 In th is sense children work:Infants try endlessly to open kitchen cabinets; toddlers put things inthings, make sand castles, and tear paper; young children fix toytrucks, bake imaginary cakes, and care for baby dolls; latency agechildren learn to read, play musical instruments , rake leaves, bring outthe tra sh, and on and on.

Work has also been defined as serious act ivi ty in which the in-dividual feels responsible for the end product. '4 Have you ever beenwith an infant who is trying to reach a cookie, or a toddler building atower of blocks? There is no doubt that these people are serious, feelresponsible for their actions, and are preoccupied with the endproduct.

As children mature and develop, the y begin to distinguish and labelaspects of their activities as either play or work. For the preschoolchild, work is associated with the world of adults and play is what


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children do in thei r world. Children at this age want to work as

revealed in their play, which consists of vivid imitations of adult man-nerisms, abilities, and roles and identifications with adult charac-teristics of beauty, strength , and power. They also pla y with toys,swing on swings and wa tch television. Thus, t he preschooler's distinc-tion between work and play appears to revolve around the ir subjectiveperception of adult sta tus and reality. The l a t e n c y a g echild associatesw o r k with school, doing required chores, or performing the unpleasan tor coerced part of any activity. He plays baseball and fantasy gameswhile he works a t learning to read or cleaning up his room.

Adult work of all kinds results from the complex transfor mation ofwhat starts with an infant's playful, exploratory, and manipulativebehavior. Erikson describes the transformation of play into work asthe process by which the spheres of play and games increasinglyreach into the a rena of responsible and irreversible action. 5 If all goeswell, an element of play fuln ess remains in both work and playthr oughout the life cycle. Playfu lness adds the joy of self-ex-pression to the play and work of children and adults. ~

The arena of play can be described in terms of four specific charac-teris tics of playing. These charac teri stics are complex processes:

1. Play provides the oppo rtunity for children to learn, develop, andperfect new skills.

2. Play is the child's natu ral mode to maste r anxie ty from over-whelming experiences and to negotiat e stress from the demandsof everyda y life.

3. Play helps build the ego's capac ity to mediate between un-

conscious and conscious realities.4. Play repeats or confirms a gra tifying experience; play is fun.

na logs of du l t Capac i ty to W ork

Each play characteristic builds skills and at titudes tha t c onsti tute achildhood analog of adult work. The four analogs are (1) c o m p e t e n c ewhich emerges out of the opp ort uni ty provided by play to build skills;(2) c a p a c i t y to co p e w i t h t h e e n v i r o n m e n twhich relates to themanagement of anxiety learned in play; (3) e g o s t r e n g t h which isenhanced by the relationship of play to reality; and (4) i n v e s t m e n t inlife, which develops thr oug h the child's en joyment of play.


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38 C h i ld P s y c h i a t r ya n d H u m a n e v e lo p m e n t

Competence

F i r s t, a c h i ld d e v e l o p s a c o m p e t e n c e t h r o u g h p l a y. F u n c t i o n a lt h e o r i e s o f p l a y e m p h a s i z e t h a t i n p l a y i n g c h i ld r e n l e a rn a n d g r o w b ym a i n t a i n i n g a n a c t i v e i n t e r a c t i o n w i t h t h e p h y s i c a l a n d s o c i a l e n -v i r o n m e n t . I n d i v i d u a l s k il ls a r e d is c o v e r e d , d e v e l o p e d , a n d p e r f e c t e d .

P i a g e t ' s w o r k d e s c r ib e s t h e c e n t r a l ro le o f p l a y i n t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o fi n te l li g e n c e . 6 H e d e s c r i b e s h o w t h e c h i ld m o v e s t o i n c r e a s i n g l ys o p h i s t ic a t e d l e v el s of t h o u g h t f r o m h is c o n t i n u e d e x p lo r a ti o n ,m a n i p u l a ti o n , a n d e x p e r i m e n t a t io n w i t h t h e o b j e c ts a r o u n d h i m . T h e

c h i ld is l e a r n i n g w h a t h e c a n d o a n d e x p a n d i n g h i s r e p e r t o ir e o f co m -p e t e n c ie s . H e i s a l so l e a r n i n g a b o u t w h a t i s w o r k a b l e in t h e s t r u c t u r eo f t h i n g s a n d i n t h e n a t u r e o f b a s ic m a t e r i a l s . 5

D i f f e r e n t t y p e s o f p l a y r e l a t e t o n e a r l y a ll t y p e s o f s k il ls r e q u i r e d i na d u l t f u n c t i o n i n g . E x e r c i s e o f m o t o r , s e n s o r y, p e r c e p t u a l , a n dc o g n i t iv e a b il it ie s l e a d s t o c o m p e t e n c e i n t h e s e a r e a s . I n a d d i t i o n , p l a yw i t h p e e r s b e c o m e s t h e a r e n a f o r l e a r n i n g i n t e r p e r s o n a l s k i l l s a n dd e v e l o p i n g so c i al c o m p e t e n c e . I n p e e r p l a y t h e c h i ld a t e a c h a g ep r e p a r e s f o r a d u l t s o c i a l i n t e r a c t io n . P r e s c h o o l c h i l d r e n p l a y h o u s e ,w a r, h o s p i t a l , m a r r i a g e , a n d e v e n s c h o o l. I f y o u l i s t e n to a n d o b s e r v et h i s p l a y, y o u w i ll h e a r t h e p a r t i c i p a n t d e b a t i n g t h e r i g h t a n d

w r o n g w a y s to d o v a r i o u s ta s k s , p e r f o r m r ole s , o r e v e n d r es s a p a r t .T h e r e i s a n u n n e r v i n g a c c u r a c y in t h e i r im i t a t io n s a n d u s u a l l y a na m u s i n g c r e a t i v it y i n t h e i r a d a p t a t i o n s o f a d u l t life .

I n l a t e n c y t h e c h i l d d e v e l o p s a n d e x t e n d s h is c o m p e t e n c e i n to t h er e a l w o r ld . F a n t a s y p r o v i d e s a p r i v a t e w o r ld f o r e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n ; t h ec h i ld a ls o n e e d s t o m a s t e r t h e r e a l w o r ld a n d i ts d e m a n d s . T h e c h i ldm o v e s f r o m p l a y t h a t i m a g i n e s t h e s e lf i n t h eimaginary a d u l t a n db a b y w o r l d t o b e i n g a se l f i n a r e a l c h i l d w o r l d . F a n t a s i e s o f b e i n g af a m o u s s c i e n t is t m u s t b e c o m p l e m e n t e d b y g o o d g r a d e s i n s c ho o l; o fb e i n g t h e s t a r R e d S o x p i t c h e r b y m a k i n g l it tl e le a g u e; o f b e i n g af a s h i o n m o d e l b y a p p r o p r i a t e d r e s s a n d g r o o m i n g ; o f b e i n g a p o p u l a rm o v i e s t a r b y a c ir cle o f f r ie n d s w h o c o m e t o p l a y w i t h y o u a f te rschool .

A c c o r d i n g t o E r i k s o n , c o m p e t e n c e is o n e o f t h e v i r t u e s d e v e l o p e di n c h i l d h o o d w h i c h c h a r a c t e r iz e s w h a t e v e n t u a l l y b e c o m e s w o rk -m a n s h i p . . . . ,, 7 A s s u m i n g a c u m u l a t i v e t h e o r y o f d e v e l o p m e n t , o n ec a n p r o p o s e t h a t c o m p e t e n c e i n c h i l d h o o d t a s k s w ill l e ad t o b e n i g nc y c l e s o f d e v e l o p m e n t a l p r o g r e s s S - - su c c e s s b r e e d s s u c ce s s .


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N a n c y S C o t t o n 1 39

apacity to ope

I n t h e s e c o n d c h i l d h o o d a n a l o g , p l a y i n g r e l a t e s t o t h e c h i l d ' sc a p a c i t y t o c o pe . A n n a F r e u d c o n s i d e rs t h e c a p a c i t y t o c o p e o n e o f t h ep r i n c ip a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f m e n t a l h e a l t h i n c h il dh o o d .9 T h e c a p a c i t yt o re g u l a t e a n d t o l e r a t e l e v e l s o f a n x i e t y t h r o u g h a c t i v e c o p i n g a ll o w st h e c h il d t o m a s t e r d a n g e r s i t u a t i o n s a n d to d i s p e n s e w i t h e x c e s s i v ed e f e n s e a c t i v it y, c o m p r o m i s e f o r m a t io n s , a n d s y m p t o m a t o l o g y. ''9

T r a u m a t i c t h e o r i e s o f p l a y d e s cr ib e t h e m a n a g e m e n t o f a n x i e t yt h r o u g h f a n t a s y p l a y. T h is a n x i e t y c a n r e s u l t f r o m t h r e e s o u r c e s: t h eo v e r w h e l m i n g o r t r a u m a t i c e x p e r i e n c e s o f t h e p a s t , e m o t i o n a l d if-f ic u l ti e s r e l a t i n g t o c u r r e n t s t r e s s , o r t h e a n t i c i p a t e d c o n f l i ct s a n dt r o u b l e s o f t h e f u t u r e . C l in ic a l d e s c r i p t i o n s o f c h i l d h o o d p l a y h a v ed e s c r i b e d t h i s p r o c e s s a n d p l a y t h e r a p y i s b a s e d o n t h i s p ri n ci p le . P l a yp r o v i d e s t h e c h i ld w i t h a t r ia l u n i v e r s e 7 i n w h i c h f a n t a s y p l a y a l lo w sf o r t h e g r a d u a l a s s i m i l a t i o n o f a n x i e t y . . . . ,,10 To q u o t e F r e u d ' sdescr ip t ion11:

I t i s cer ta in tha t ch i ldren behav e in th is fashion toward e verydis t ress ing impress ion they rece ive , tha t i s by reproducing i t in the i rp lay. In th is chang ing f rom pass iv i ty to ac t iv i ty they a t t e m pt to mas te rthe i r exper ience psychica l ly.

I n h e r 1 9 35 s t u d y o f c h i l d r e n 's i m a g i n a t i o n , G r i f f i th s c o n c l u d e d t h a tf a n t a s y i s t h e m a n n e r o f t h i n k i n g n a t u r a l i n c h il d h o o d . 3'' T h e c h i l d

b u i l d s a sy m b o l i c fr a m e w o r k a r o u n d t h e p h y s i c a l w o r ld . T h e t o y w o r ldo f p l a y i s a w o r l d o f d i s p l a c e d a n d p r o j e c t e d e m o t i o n s a n d c o n f li c ts . Toq u o t e G r i f f i t h s 3 :

W hen faced wi th a d i ff icu l ty { the child} c lo thes i t in sym bol ism, andexper imen t s in the new er med ium. T emp ora r ily l eav ing thereal prob lemwhich he cannot ov er t ly w ork out to i t s logical conclusion , he developsan ana logous s itua t ion a t t he f an ta sy leve l . . .

T h e p o w e r a n d s i g n if i c a n c e o f t h i s p l a y i s t h a t t h e c h i l d m a s t e r s h i sd i f fi c u l t y b y h i s o w n m e t h o d . T h e w o r k o f E r i k s o n 2 a n d P i a g e t Gcon-f i rm s a n d e l a b o r a t e s t h i s f u n c t i o n o f p l a y a s t h e w a y i n w h i c h a c h i l dt h i n k s o v e r d i f fi c u l t e x p e r i e n c e s .

T h e c h i l d d e v e l o p s a c o p i n g s t y l e i ntheprivate w o r l d o f f a n t a s y p l a ya n d i n th e p u b l i c w o r l d o f p e e r p l a y, f a m i l y p l a y, a n d p l a y i n s c h oo l a n d


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14 Child Psychiatry a n d u m a n Development

i n t h e p l a y g r o u n d . T h e s e a r e n a s p r o v i d e t h e s t r e s s a n d o p p o r t u n i t i e s

n e e d e d t o d e v e l o p t h e c a p a c i t y t o c o pe . A d a p t i v e c o p i n g i n v o lv e sp r o d u c t i v e , a c t iv e , a n d f l e xi b le b e h a v i o r a l s t r a t e g i e s t h a t a r e a p-p r o p r i a t e to t h e e n v i r o n m e n t a n d e n h a n c e t h e c h i ld ' s e ff o r ts t o c a r e f orhi m se lf . 12

go Strength

I n t h e t h i r d a n a l o g p l a y b u i l d s e g o s t r e n g t h . T h e e g o a c t s a s t h em e d i a t o r b e t w e e n v a r i o u s l e v e ls o f r e a l it y o r t h e d e m a n d s o f s e p a r a t e

a g e n c ie s o f t h e m i n d . T h e a c t iv i ti e s o f p l a y b u i l d e g o s t r e n g t h b ye n h a n c i n g t h e i n t e g r a t i o n a n d e x p r e s s i o n o f c o n t r a d i c t o r y r e a li ti es ,e m o t io n s , a n d d e m a n d s . C a t h a r t i c t h e o r i e s o f p l a y d e s c r ib e t h ew a y s i n w h i c h p l a y r e le a s e s p e n t - u p e m o t i o n s '5 a n d p r o v i d e s s ub -s t i t u t e o r a l t e r n a t i v e c h a n n e l s f o r e x p r e s s i o n o f i n s t i n c t u a l n e e d s .

T h e p l a y i n g e x p e r i en c e h a s a u n i q u e r e l a t i o n s h i p t o r e a l it y w h i c hc o n t r i b u t e s t o t h e s t r e n g t h e n i n g o f t h e e g o . C o g n i ti v e ly, p l a y i n g isp a r t i c u la r l y s u i t e d to t h e e x p r e s s i o n o f e m o t i o n ; p s y c h o d y n a m i c a l l yp l a y i s e q ua ll y- w e U p o s i t i o n e d t o h a n d l e i n s t i n c t u a l c o n f l ic t a n d e x -p r e s s io n . P i a g e t ' s d e s c r i p t io n o f c o g n i t i v e d e v e l o p m e n t p o i n t s o u tt h a t p l a y a n d f a n t a s y a re c o n n e c t e d to t h e e x p r e s si o n of e m o t i o nt h r o u g h t h e s p e c i a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f p r e o p e r a t i o n a l o r i n t u i t i v et h o u g h t . N u m e r o u s a u t h o r s h a v e r e f er r ed t o t h e d u a l n a t u r e o f p l a y inw h i c h t h e p l a y e r fa c e s i n w a r d t o h i s u n c o n s c i o u s a n d o u t w a r d tor e a l it y. 4 W i n ni co t t1 3 r e f e r s to p l a y a s t h e a r e a o f e x p e r i e n c e b e t w e e ns u b j e c t i v i t y a n d o b j e c t i v i t y a n d B a t e s o n 14 p o s i t i o n s p l a y h a l f- w a yb e t w e e n p r i m a r y a n d se c o n d a r y p r o c e s s t h i n k in g .

P l a y a n d f a n t a s y s e r v e t o e x p r e s s a n d e n r i c h t h e c h i l d 's e m o t i o n a llif e. F e a r, jo y, s a d n e s s , a n g e r, a n d i n t e r e s t b e c o m e a m p l i f ie d a n df a m i l i a r t h r o u g h d r a m a t i c p l a y, a t h l e t ic c o n t e s t s , d o l l p l a y, a n d o n t h eg a m e b o a r d s o f l a te n c y.

P l a y a ls o h e l p s c h i ld r e n t o r e n o u n c e in s t i n c t u a l s a t is f a c t io n s b yc r e a t i n g s u b s t i t u t i o n s t h a t p e r m i t p a r t i a l d i s c h a rg e . . . ,, 4 I n t h i s w a yp l a y i s a s t e p t o w a r d s u b l i m a t i o n . P l a y i s t h e a r e n a i n w h i c h t h eb a s ic c o n c e r n s o f t h e d r i v e s a n d i n s t i n c t s a r e c o m p e n s a t e d fo r, ex -p r e s se d , a n d m a n a g e d . F o r e x a m p l e, t h e c h il d m a n a g e s a t t a c h m e n ta n d s e p a r a t i o n i n in f a n c y t h r o u g h p e ek - a- b oo a n d in l a t e n c y t h r o u g hh i d e -a n d - s e e k . D o c t o r g a m e s , s p i n - th e - b o t t le , a n d p o s t -o f f ic e al lo w f o ra r e d i r e c ti o n o f se x u a l -s e n s u a l d ri v e s f r o m t h e p a r e n t s t o p e e r s a n ds i b li n g s ; a n d f i n a ll y c o m p e t i t i v e s p o r t s a r e o n e e x a m p l e o f t h e o p -po r tu n i ty t o r i tua l i ze , r e d i r ec t , o r cha nne l ag g re s s ion . Sa r no ff 15


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elaborates the way in which sublimation and symbolization develop as

ego functions to create a sta te of latency. In this state fanta sy andplay act as sa fe ty valves sparing the child conflict with real peoplein the environment, diminishing the impact of drives and cir-cumventi ng regression. 15

n v e s t m e n t in L i fe

The fourth analog is the child's capacity to invest in life through hisenjoyment of his play and work. Although this paper connectschildhood playing with adult functioning, it does not intend ateleological motivation to play. Children play because it isfun--because there is something inherently satisfying in it--notbecause it is going to have value at some future time. The experience ofpleasure associated with play is a part of all the characteristic s of play.It refers to the pleasure a child feels in the doing in itself ; whatPiage t refers to as func tional pleasure ~; Groos called the child 's joyin being a cause l~; and Robert White defined as the feeling of ef-ficacy or the feeling of doing something , of being active or effective,or having an influence on something. '17 In her longitudinal study ofKansas children, Lois Mur phy I2 observed if from birth. She noticedtha t a child's overall capacity to enjoy himself and his activ ity in theworld were closely connected to the feeling of triumph or I can do itfeelings 12 This t riump h is qu ite d ifferent from the feeling of blis swhich the infant feels when he has been done for--for example, thefeeling afte r a sat isfying feeding. The experience of enjoying one's ownefforts is the unique pleasure associa ted with play and work. Lois Mur-phy observed that the fun of play may be part of natu re's ex-travaganc e or generosit y--an extra guara ntee tha t a wide range of sen-sory, motor , manipulat ive, or social exper iences will be explored. 12

A child's enj oyment of action reflects a developing inner core of thepersonality. Hea lth y development depends on an ability to enjoy andexpect gratifying exchanges with the environment. Positive ex-pectations mold in turn more eager, optimistic responses to presentand future experiences and increase the range of resources forgrat ifica tion available in the child.

The significance of the transformation of the fun of play into thiscapaci ty for investment in life is what Kohut will refer to as the joy ofexistence in his formulations of adult psychic development.is Thiscapacity for investment is the internal link in the child's ability toutilize what he has and might develop. Without this capacity, the self


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42 Child Psychiatry and Human Development

cannot avail itself of the talent s and skills at an individual's disposal,

enabling him to love and work successfully. ls

o n c l u s i o n

Let me conclude with two contr astin g images:My desk looks onto a park in an urban neighborhood. As I write this

paper there are many children of all ages playing in the park. A littleleague team of girls and boys is practicing on the baseball diamond;parent s a re swinging children on the swings; one small boy is learn ingto ride a bicycle; a group of teenagers are lying under a willow treesmoking cigarettes; young boys are riding down a hill on bicycles anddoing tricks in the air as they strike the dirt bump at the bottom; andthere is a preschool contingent who are busy with building, cooking,throwing, and eating in the sand box. The entire space is filled withchildren involved in one activity or another with interest, energy, andapparent pleasure.

A ver y different set of images comes to mind when I think of scenesoutside of my office at a Child Psychiatric Inpatient Service for la-tenc y age children.

A cooking group of four children and two adults were starting tomake a pizza. An argumen t began over who would roll out the dough,which ended in two more adults arriving on the scene to remove thefurious child who was screaming at the top of his lungs, No one everlets me do what I want to do. One child left the group and began torock anxiously in the living room. The remaining two children com-pleted the pizza. Other members of the group had refused to par-ticipate and rema ined in their rooms. Anothe r child chose to spend histime building an intricate leggo fort, which he had to leave until heagreed to complete his daffy chore, which he had been avoiding sincebreakfast.

In both scenes there are busy, active children. The behaviors andevents of each setting could occur in the other, but the predominantmoods, activities, and outcomes were markedly different. Theplaygroun d and ward are both arenas for the development of playing.Pleasure, concentration, interest, and contentment fill the park withonly mom ent ary frustrations, quarrels, anger, or sadness. The reverseis true on the ward where excitement, triumph, and success arefleeting and frustration, anxiety, and disappointments prevail ifchildren are left to their own devices. The children on the ward uni-


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N a n c y S . C o t t o n 1 43

f o r m l y h a v e a s e r i o u s a n d p e r v a s i v e d e f i c i t i n th e i r p l a y. T h e b u i l d i n g

o f c o m p e t e n c e i s in h i b i t e d b y f r e q u e n t d i s r u p t i o n s i n t h e ir a c t iv i ti e sd u e t o i m p a i r e d s o c i a l s k i l l s ; a n i n a b i l i t y t o c o p e w i t h a n x i e t y a n df r u s t r a t i o n s ; t h e i n t r u s i o n o f i n t r a p s y c h i c c o n f l i c t s p a s t v u l n e r a b l ee g o s ; a n d a b a s i c l a c k o f p l e a s u r e i n t h e p r o c e s s o f l e a r n i n g , d o i n g , a n db e i n g f o r i ts o w n s ak e . T h e b e n i g n c y c le o f d e v e l o p m e n t d e s c r ib e de a r li er i s r e p l a c e d b y a m o r e v i c i o u s c y c l e o f d e v e l o p m e n t . T h ec h i l d r e n o n t h e w a r d h a v e d e f i c i e n t c o m p e t e n c e ; t h e y u s e n o n -p r o d u c t i v e , p a s s i v e , r i g id c o p i n g s tr a t e g i e s ; t h e y f u n c t i o n w i t h d e fe c -r i v e e g o s ; a n d t h e y h a v e m a j o r i n h i b i t i o n s a n d d i s t o r t i o n s i n t h e i rc a p a c i t y t o i n v e s t i n th e b u s i n e s s o f w o r k i n g a n d p l a y i n g .

A t t h i s p o i n t i t s h o u l d b e c le a r w h y F r e u d ' s i n i ti a l fo r m u l a t io n o fp s y c h o l o g i c a l h e a l t h i n c lu d e d t h e f r e e d o m t o l o v e a n d w o r k . T h ec a p a c i t y t o w o r k in c l u d e s m o r e t h a n s y m p t o m - f r e e f u n c t i o n i n g f o ra d u l t s a n d c h il d re n . I n t r a p s y c h i c c on f li ct , n e u r o t i c s y m p t o m a t o l o g y,a n d i m m a t u r e d e f e n s e s c a n s e r i o u s ly c o m p r o m i s e a n i n d i v i d u a l ' sc a p a c i t y t o p l a y a n d w o r k . H o w e v e r , t h e m e r e a b s e n c e o f s u c hp s y c h o l o g i c a l t r o u b l e i s n o t t h e s u f f i c ie n t f a c t o r f o r t h e p r e s e n c e o f ef-f e c t i v e a n d p l e a s u r e a b l e w o r k a n d p l a y i n t h e a d u l t . I t h a s b e e nn e c e s s a r y t o e x p l o r e a c h il d 's a r e n a o f p l a y f o r c o m p o n e n t s o f h e a l t h ya d a p t a t i o n a n d c o n c e p t s o f p o s i t i v e m e n t a l h e a l t h to f i n d a n a lo g s o fw o r k c a p a c i ty.

F i n al ly, t h e a f fe c ti v e v i ta l i t y o f m a t u r e , h e a l t h y w o r k e m e rg e s w h e ni ts c h i l d h o o d r o o t s a r e e x a m i n e d . Wo r k c a n b r i n g t h e c o n c e n t r a t i o n ,j o y, t r iu m p h , a n d c o n t e n t m e n t w e s ee i n a c h i ld ' s p l ay. A s G e o rg eVa i l la n t 1~ r e m i n d s u s , a d a p t a t i o n is m o r e t h a n a d j u s t m e n t a n d c on -f o r m i ty. E r i k s o n d e s c r ib e s h o w t h e h e a l t h y p e r s o n g r o w s o r a s itw e r e a c c r u e s f r o m . . , s u c c e s s iv e p s y c h o s o c i a l s t a g e s t h e i n c r e a s in gc a p a c i t y t o m a s t e r l if e 's o u t e r a n d i n n e r d a n g e r s - - w i t h s o m e v it a l en -t h u s i a s m to sp a r e . 2

e f e r e n c e s

1. Waelder R: The psychoanalytic theory of play. Psychoanal Quart 2: 208.224 1932.2 . E r i k s o n E H : I d e n t i t y a n d t h e li fe c y c le .Psychological issues Vo l 1 . N e w Y o r k : I n -

t e r n a t i o n a l U n i v e r s i t i e s P r e s s 1 95 9 p p 1-1 71 .

3 . G r i f f i t h s R :A study of imagination in early childhood. We s t p o r t C o n n e c t i c u t :G r e e n w o o d P r e s s 1 93 5.4 . P l a u t E A : P l a y a d a p t a t i o n .Psychoanal Study of the Child 34: 217-232 1979.5 . E r i k s o n E H :Toys and reasons. N e w Yo r k : W . W. N o r t o n 1 9 77 .6 . P i a g e t J :The moral jud gment of the child. N e w Yo r k : H a r c o u r t 1 9 32 .7 . E r i k s o n E H :Ins ight and responsibility. N e w Yo r k : W. W. N o r t o n 1 96 4.


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4 4 C h i ld P s y c h i a t r y a n d H u m a n D e v e l o p m e n t

8. Smith MB: Competence and socialization. In Clausen JA ed), Socia l iza t ion and

society. Boston : Lit tle, Brown and Company~ 1968.9. Freud A: Norm a l i t y and pa tho log y in ch ildhood : As ses sm en t s o f deve lopmen tVolVI. New York: International Univer siti es Press, 1965.

10. Vai llant G: Ad ap ta t io n to l ife.Boston : Little, Brown and Company, 1977.11. Freud S: Inh ib i t ions sym pto m s and anx ie tyVol 20 Standard ed), London:

Hogarth, 1959, pp 77-178.12. Murphy LB: The wid ening world of childhood.New York: Basic Books, 1962.13. Winnico tt DW: Pla ying and rea l ity.New York: Basic Books, 1971.14. Bateson G: A Theory of play and fantasy. P s y c h i a t r R e s R e p 2 :39-51, 1955.15. Sarnof f C: La tency. New York: Jaso n Aronson, 1976.16. Groos K: T h e p l a y o f m an .NewYork: Appleton, 1901.17. Whi te R: Eg o a nd rea l i ty in psych oan aly t ic theory. Psychologica l i s suesVol. 3,

Monograph 11. New York, Interna tiona l Universit ies Press, 1963.18. Kohut H: The res tora t ion of the se lf .New York: International Universities Press,1977.

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