This study focused on examining the treatment effect associated with two 12-sessioninterventions (child-centered play therapy and nature-based child-centered play therapy) among early elementary schoolchildren (N8) who had an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder diagnosis. Children were randomly assigned to one of the treatment groups or the wait list group. We found that the child-centered play therapy intervention ranged from debatable (n1) to effective (n2) and the nature-based child-centered play therapy intervention ranged from debatable (n1) to very effective (n1), with one participant also scoring in the effective range for improving on-task behavior. In comparison, the wait list group participants had a large fluctuation in scores, with the analysis revealing that non involvement in treatment was ineffective for improving on-task behavior.

Play Therapy Primary Areas:

• Skills and Methods
• Special Topics
  

School counselors are often the first professionals to become aware of the mental health problems of young children. Given that play therapy is the most developmentally appropriate approach for elementary school-age children, it is important to understand why some school counselors use play therapy and others do not. The purpose of this study was to address this question by examining variables related to elementary school counselors’ use or non use of play therapy in the elementary school setting. A survey was sent to a random sample of elementary school counselors who were members of the American School Counselor Association. The findings indicated that perceived effectiveness was a significant predictor of the use of play therapy among elementary school counselors. The implications of the findings include the value of the newly formed School Based-Registered Play Therapist credential to address issues of effectiveness and supervision of school counselors and their use of play therapy.

Play Therapy Primary Areas:

• Special Topics
  

Many children benefit from play therapy interventions because they are develop men-tally appropriate and allow children to speak in their native language of play. Further-more, children are given freedom and control in the playroom to work through problems at their own pace. Reality therapy is also grounded in the idea that freedom and control are important aspects to explore for optimal client growth. Helping children examine what they want and can control in their lives allows them to think about and evaluate their choices. Evaluating what they are doing and planning for future decision scan improve children’s quality world and positively impact their total behavior. In this article, we propose integrating reality therapy with play therapy. We provide specific information on reality play therapy activities and a case example to highlight how this might look in the playroom.

Play Therapy Primary Areas:

• Special Topics