Empirically Based Play Interventions for Children

Play is a universal form of communication for children that promotes healthy cognitive, language, physical, and social development. Incorporating play into child therapy can therefore help children who are having difficulties in one or more of these developmental areas. For over 70 years, play therapy has been recognized as an effective method for targeting specific behaviors and competencies to help children communicate their thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and to refine their current skills and learn new ones.

This book is a comprehensive reference for clinicians and researchers that provides well-established, theoretically based, and flexible interventions―both directive and nondirective―to meet the growing and diverse needs of today’s children and families. This updated edition presents new research on play therapy treatment models and agents that have shown significant promise in treating a variety of child disorders―including autism. Authors also consider implementation issues arising from new mental health policies and initiatives, including integrated health care systems and the Affordable Care Act.

Each chapter is carefully organized to include the theoretical basis and objectives of various innovative play interventions, key treatment ingredients and processes, and recommendations for replication and transportability to other settings. Detailed vignettes illustrate how these interventions can be used in clinical practice.

Linda A. Reddy, PhD, is a professor of school psychology at Rutgers University. She received her doctorate in school psychology from University of Arizona.

Dr. Reddy has published more than 70 manuscripts or book chapterson attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), group play interventions, school interventions, and testing. She is a fellow of APA and 2014 president of APA Division 16 (School Psychology).

Dr. Reddy is the author of Group Play Interventions for Children: Strategies for Teaching Prosocial Skills (2012), lead editor of Neuropsychological Assessment and Intervention for Emotional and Behavior Disordered Youth: An Integrated Step-by-Step Evidence-Based Approach (2013), and lead author of the Classroom Strategies Scales.

She is the recipient of research and service awards, and has received more than $43 million in funding for her work. A licensed psychologist in New Jersey, Dr. Reddy has extensive clinical experience working with children with emotional, behavioral, and neurocognitive difficulties, and with families and schools.

Tara M. Files-Hall, PhD, is a licensed clinical child psychologist, certified school psychologist, and registered play therapist in Florida. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Dr. Files-Hall has extensive clinical experience evaluating and treating children and adolescents, and consulting with parents, teachers, and school systems; and has advanced training in play therapy through the Association for Play Therapy, Inc. She has numerous publications and professional presentations on the efficacy of play-based interventions and behavioral treatments for children with emotional and behavioral issues, including ADHD.

Dr. Files-Hall maintains her private practice at Family C.O.P.E. (Center of Psychotherapy/Psychiatry and Evaluation) in Sarasota, Florida, where she conducts individual, play, and family therapy; conducts psychological evaluations; and provides school-based consultation to elementary, middle, and high schools.

Charles E. Schaefer, PhD, is an emeritus professor of psychology and former director of the Center for Psychological Services at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He is the cofounder and board member emeritus of the International Association for Play Therapy, and is the founder of the Play Therapy Training Institute in New Jersey. He received his doctorate in clinical psychology from Fordham University.

With more than 40 years of experience working with children and parents, Dr. Schaefer has received numerous awards for his clinical and research work on child development, parenting, and play therapy; has published more than 60 books and numerous articles and book chapters on play-based interventions; and serves on several journal editorial review boards.

He was the former director of psychology at The Children's Village in Dobbs Ferry, New York. He maintains a private practice for children and their families in Hackensack, New Jersey.