Critical Review of Play Therapy Assessments.

Abstract

As part of the creative modalities, play therapy offers a therapeutic mode far diagnosis, assessment, and treatment interventions. The purpose of this paper is to critically review three play therapy interventions:The Developmental Play Assessment, the Marschak Interaction Method, and the Family Systems Test. A brief introduction to each assessment will be presented. Additionally, validity and reliability data will be addressed. The overall evaluation will include the assessments desirable as well as undesirable features, which is of critical importance to play therapists and those therapists using play as a method of diagnosis and assessment.

Pretend play and social play: The concurrent validity of the Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment.

“…The child’s play ability, as an outcome measure, is rarely used in play therapy even though play is the natural mode for children (Bratton, Ray, Rhine, & Jones, 2005; Phillips, 1985). One play assessment used in play therapy as an outcome measure is the Developmental Play Assessment (Brooke, 2004). This assessment was reviewed by Brooke (2004) who concluded that his assessment was standardized on a small sample of children diagnosed with autism and so its application to the wide range of children referred to play therapy is limited.…”

“…One play assessment used in play therapy as an outcome measure is the Developmental Play Assessment (Brooke, 2004). This assessment was reviewed by Brooke (2004) who concluded that his assessment was standardized on a small sample of children diagnosed with autism and so its application to the wide range of children referred to play therapy is limited. Children's pretend play (also called fantasy play, representational play, make-believe play, and imaginative and symbolic play) has been of interest to play therapists because theorists who have placed emphasis on the long term benefits of play have encouraged pretend play in therapy (Howe & Silvern, 1981).…”

“…Outcome measures of a child’s functioning used in play therapy have been grouped into academic measures, behavioral measures, sociometry measures, and measures of self in relation to anxiety and other interpersonal functions (LeBlanc & Ritchie, 2001; Phillips, 1985). Brooke (2004) noted that assessment of the child’s current level of functioning was important to therapy and reviewed three assessments used in play therapy: the Developmental Play Assessment, Marschak Interaction Model, and the Family System Test. These three assessments are examples of outcome measures used to assess a child’s functioning or interaction with others.…”

“…Children’s pretend play (also called fantasy play, representational play, make-believe play, and imaginative and symbolic play) has been of interest to play therapists because theorists who have placed emphasis on the long term benefits of play have encouraged pretend play in therapy (Howe & Silvern, 1981). Understanding a child’s pretend play ability could be a valuable addition to the outcome measures used in play therapy because it is an important aspect of a child’s development, is a reflection of a child’s inner life and cognitive and social abilities (Brooke, 2004; Russ, 2005; Stagnitti & Unsworth, 2000). Utilizing valid and reliable play assessments can help in understanding play as a complex and meaningful activity of children as well as adding to the empirical base of the profession.…”

“…Utilizing valid and reliable play assessments can help in understanding play as a complex and meaningful activity of children as well as adding to the empirical base of the profession. The therapist’s knowledge of the reliability and validity of the assessment is particularly important when giving expert witness (Brooke, 2004).…”