The Therapeutic Powers of Play: 20 Core Agents of Change

by Charles E. Schaefer, Athena A. Drewes

While current research shows that play therapy is an effective means of treatment, it doesn't explain why it helps or how to utilize play therapy to bring about positive change. In this revision and expansion of a classic play therapy book, editors Charles Schaefer and Athena Drewes, two renowned experts and pioneers in the field, share the nuts and bolts of how play therapy can foster treatment gains in children and adolescents. This pioneering book provides a unique understanding of the process of play therapy by highlighting the therapeutic forces contained within it and offers practical guidance for mental health professionals who are looking to incorporate play into their practice as well as for certified play therapists looking for a refreshing and up-to-date guide.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published July 7, 1977

Reviews

[Makenzey Murr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for work. It will be very applicable, and I learned a lot about play therapy! It just bothered me that each chapter was written by a different author so it got a bit repetitive toward the end and some chapters read more “textbook” than others which made it slow to get through. But I understand why this is so foundational to play therapy, and I’ll use it frequently when explaining play therapy to others.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really useful foundational book that has helped me better explain to my clients why play therapy is beneficial

[Brent McGregor · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s probably better to call it the Tool Box of Behavior Modification since many of these approaches are at face value contradictory. Catharsis is one that I seriously disagree with in the context that it was presented. It’s a personal preference that avoids rumination and imprinting. Some experiences are devastating, but by unleashing raw emotional purging and then sorting out the mess once it’s all over the place is something that barely survives as a practice today.
Compare that to Empathy, which tries to agree with Catharsis by redefining it to a less violent classical approach. To me, the Empathy approach, using some of the techniques like mirroring, favors the more current neurological models of therapy. Children often do things because they are impulsive and not because, like Freud, have some secret agenda for bringing the wrong key to the office.
Play is an essential part of childhood development and in most of the population is best left to the child to work out. Occasionally, there are significant events in a child’s life that necessitate a closer examination and possible intervention. This book is for those moments (which are out of my purview anyway).
My interest in this book, as a reviewer, was twofold; to gain insight on how to improve my relationships with children under my care, and to understand what awaits children who exhibit more problematic behaviors.
From that perspective this book offers a wealth of insight into why we all do things to avoid some situations and are attracted to others. Further on in Resiliency, there is a section on blame. As adults blame seems all too pervasive and it is apparent that we take these unresolved emotions and continue working them out far past their shelf life.
Self-Regulation is probably the most talked about in the Emotional Intelligence community and a good treatment of the subject from a clinical standpoint. As stated elsewhere, Self-Control holds the key to the future. Page 272 says as much.
It probably won’t be too far off the mark to say that Self-Regulation is the goal of whatever tools you choose to employ in this book.
Recommend most of it.

[Lorilin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book (more of a textbook, really) is a collection of twenty research papers written on the topic of play therapy. All of the papers focus on different benefits of using play therapy to help children who are having trouble living their lives in some way.

The table of contents is lengthy and seems formidable at first, but, in reality, the book's content is pretty straight-forward. The papers are divided into four parts, each part demonstrating the usefulness and effectiveness of play therapy to 1) facilitate communication, 2) foster emotional wellness, 3) enhance social relationships, or 4) increase personal strengths.

I have a Masters in Social Work, but I stay at home with my kids now. Though I realize this is a book written for professionals in a clinical setting, I actually found Part 4 to be particularly useful to me insofar as I think it will help me help my kids interact better with other people, especially other kids their own ages. (I especially loved Jill Packman's paper on Moral Development.)

At any rate, if you are looking for a casual parenting book that will help you play with your toddlers better, you'll want to pass on this one. The Therapeutic Powers of Play is definitely more of a textbook for graduate-level students and licensed professionals.