WHO IS GARRY LANDRETH?

Carl Rogers – founder of person-centered therapy Virginia Axline

o Student of Carl Rogerso Founder of child-centered play therapy

Clark Moustakaso Early child-centered play therapist

Who is Garry Landreth?

Garry Landretho Founder and director of Center for Play Therapy,

University of North Texaso Author of the most popular child-centered play therapy

text book, Play Therapy: The Art of the Relationshipo First person to conduct treatment outcome studies of

child-centered play therapy (CCPT)o Co-founder of the Association for Play Therapy (APT;

a4pt.org)

WHAT CAUSES THERAPEUTIC CHANGE IN CHILDREN?

Awareness of and responsiveness to subtle cues in child – subtle forms of communication (e.g., paying attention to child’s pulling hangnail)

Therapist’s participation in a secure relationship Child’s freedom to explore not only the

environment but also the contents of his or her own mind

PRINCIPLES FOR RELATIONSHIPS WITH

CHILDREN I am not all knowing; therefore, I will not even attempt to be (contrast with child PDT and child CBT)

I know so little about the complex intricacies of childhood; therefore, I will allow children to teach me.

I will relinquish the grasp I have on reality and try to enter the world as experienced by the child.

It feels good to be an authority, to provide answers; therefore, I will need to work hard to protect children from me!

I have learned most of what I know from experiencing; therefore, I will allow children to experience.

THE MEANING OF PLAY Cultivating a developmental perspective in play

therapyo World of reality and verbal expression (Epstein’s rational

system; Freud’s secondary process)o Conceptual-expressive world (Epstein’s experiential

system; Freud’s primary process) Forms of communication

o Verbal – domain of adults who have acquired symbolic sophistication

o Nonverbal – domain of children (≤11 years old) who have not acquired symbolic sophistication• Play• Activity (e.g., enactment)

The Meaning of Play (cont.)

Functions of Playo UN proclamation of play – universal and inalienable right of

childhoodo Play is the singular central activity of childhoodo Contrast between work and play

• Work• Goal-directed• Accommodation of environmental demands

• Play• Intrinsically rewarding• Assimilation of environment to match the child’s concepts (e.g.,

child using spoon as car)

o What happens for children during play?• Children discharge energy and relieve frustrations• Children learn social and life-task skills• Children master and achieve difficult goals• Children experiment with and understand culture• Children resolve conflicts and communicate feelings

The Meaning of Play (cont.)

Play as medium of communicationo Self-initiated and spontaneouso Restrictions to verbal communication place a barrier to the

therapeutic relationship: “Come up to my level of communication and communicate with words.”

Play in the therapeutic processo Definition: “Play therapy is defined as a dynamic interpersonal

relationship between a child (or person of any age) and a therapist trained in play therapy procedures who provides selected play materials and facilitates the development of a safe relationship for the child (or person of any age) to fully express and explore self (feelings, thoughts, experiences, and behaviors) through play, the child’s natural medium of communication, for optimal growth and development” (p.11)

Play in the Therapeutic Process (cont.)

Success of therapy depends most importantly on the development and maintenance of the therapeutic relationship

Toys are words; play is the language – the playing cure Children for whom direct communication is too

threatening can safely project all feelings and attitudes through toys they select

Play as the symbolic language of self-expression revealso What the child has experiencedo The child’s reactions to what was experiencedo The child’s feelings about what was experiencedo What the child wishes, wants, or needso The child’s perception of self

The Meaning of Play (cont.)

Symbolic playo Play bridges the gap between concrete experience and

abstract thought (Piaget, 1962)o Children learn to cope by engaging in self-directed

exploration (beginning of development of insight)o The symbolic nature of play allows for displacement – a

distancing from the content that makes their experiences safe for children to address

o Children experience being in control of their experiences

The Meaning of Play (cont.)

Stages in the play therapy process (Moustakas, 1955)o Initially diffuse negative feelingso Ambivalent feelings – generally anxious or hostileo More focused negative feelings expressed toward

significant otherso Ambivalent feelings expressed as positive and negative

feelings toward significant otherso Clear, distinct, separate, usually realistic positive and

negative attitudes, with positive attitudes predominating (differentiation and integration)

The Meaning of Play (cont.)

Play of adjusted and maladjusted childreno Maladjusted children’s play

• More dysphoric feelings• Conflictual themes• Play disruptions• Negative self-disclosing statements• Play out conflicts in more of the session• More intense aggression

o Adjusted children’s play• Less intense aggression• More acceptance of responsibility• Less conflict-ridden