Exploring How Psychologists Study the Role of Play in Child Development Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, New Edition, 1995 defines “play” as: “[Children] when children play, they do things that they enjoy, often together or with toys.” Play is one of the most powerful vehicles children have for trying out and mastering new social skills, concepts and experiences. Psychologists, such as Faulkner (1995), present evidence that play is seen as a mean of developing social skills and interpersonal relationships with others. The first section of the essay will present the different approaches psychologists use in the quest to learn about the role of children’s play and their related issues. This section will briefly define the nature of play and the different types of play that influence social development. The second section will evaluate the importance of play on different aspects of social development and in various stages of an individual. The third section will analyze how viewpoints on function of play on development are shaped by historical and contextual factors such as culture and economy. Developmental psychologists use various research methods such as naturalistic observations, interviews, experimental research and examining the natural context of children’s everyday interaction within the family to study the role of play in children’s development. They apply different approaches to study different types of play. Play by nature, creates a natural learning environment for the child. Wasserman (1992, p135) describes five benefits of play: children are able to create something new, take risks, avoid the fear of failure, ... ... middle of paper ... ...ocial development. Different types of play promote different aspects of social development such as social competence, achievement of sense of self and social perspective-taking skills. However, play is not the single causal factor that promotes a child’s social development. Family relationships and the discourse that occurs between carers and children do influence social development of a child. One example is the impact of divorce between parents made the child’s social interactions with others immature and ineffective (Hetherington et al., 1970). Peer culture plays significant impact on adolescent’s social development. Recent changes in toys and changing views of childhood which focus shifts on academic pursuits show the change in the role of play in children’s social development across different cultures and regions.
Early Childhood is marked by a time in children’s lives when they develop “a confident self-image, more effective control over their emotions, new social skills, the foundations of morality, and a clear sense of themselves as boy or girl” (Berk, Kauffman & Landrum, 2011, pg. 45). According to Erik Erikson, early childhood is a period of “vigorous unfolding,” one where children have a sense of autonomy and a new sense of purposefulness or initiative (Berk, Kauffman & Landrum, 2011, pg. 45). Play is a means for children to learn about themselves and they begin to adopt the moral and gender-role standards of the society in which they live (Berk, Kauffman & Landrum, 2011). A negative outcome of early childhood is the guilt children feel as a result of excessive punishment and criticism by the adults in their lives (Berk, Kauffman & Landrum, 2011)....
Langlois, J. and Downs, A. (1980) Mothers, fathers, and peers as socialization agents of sex-typed play behaviours in young children. Child Development, 51, (pp 1271-1247).
The Target store located at Dallas Highway in Marietta, Georgia, was chosen for the fieldwork assignment. This particular store was selected because of recent renovations to the toy area. The new arrangement of the toy department appears slightly different than traditional organizations of toys in the past. The location of the toys is in direct relation and physical flow from the baby equipment, supplies, and apparel. Toys transition from birth in the infant area initially in terms of age demographics, type of activity, and brand of toy to more obvious gender divisions beginning in the preschool toys. In the toy section for school age children, gender separation is clearly established. Gender divisions become more obvious in this age group according to colors, themes, and character depiction. The girl toys feature pink, purple, and pastel colors. The highlighted décor in the store’s displays and packaging for girls involves embellishments such as pictures of girls, flowers, glitter, and jewels. The boy section portrays color schemes that are primarily in blue, red, yellow, gray, and black. Packaging images are of male children. The sections including educational toys, games, sporting equipment, outdoor play, sound and music, building, puzzles, and arts appear to be more gender neutral although some gender specific items can be identified by color or themes such as princess/fairytale or Ninja Turtle. The configuration of the toys clearly states that color, themes, and character representation are irrelevant to infants and toddlers, while parent’s attitudes about color and gender may be important aspects of unintentional socialization in the maturation of children. Marketing strategies appeal to children, but adult’s perception of ...
An Article by Dr. Leong and Dr. Bodrova (2016) stated that play is beneficial to children’s learning especially when it reaches a certain degree of complexity. When they engage in play activities most of their early years, they learn to delay gratification and to prioritize their goals and actions. They also learn to consider the perspectives and needs of other people and to represent things significantly to regulate their behavior and actions in a cautious, intentional way.
Play is frequently used to asses cognitive and social development because it is cost-effective, can lead to direct interventions, and can be used to supervise progress. (Kelly-Vance & Ryalls, 2008) According to Blakemore, Berenbaum, and Liben (2009) cognitive development can be assessed by cognitive- environmental and developmental- constructivist approaches. Cognitive- environmental refers to the influence that parents and peers have in modeling gender appropriate behaviors. Developmental- constructive refers to the process that children use to create their own concepts of gender and gender-appropriate behaviors.
All children play and it is something that most children do because they are having fun, but without realising children are developing and learning skills when they are engaged in play. Play helps stimulate the mind as it is practical and gives children the chance to explore and experience new situations. It can also ensure that children get to think by themselves and be spontaneous as they control their own play. Children get the chance to be creative and imaginative which develops independence for children. Play is vital for child development and helps children develop five main areas of development:
Many theorists have tried to define play as a concept, however, no two agree on a set definition. Their backgrounds and induvial lifestyles influence the way they see the importance of play. Reed and Brown also believe that there isn’t an agreed definition of play because is something that is felt rather than done (Reed & Brown, 2000 cited in Brock, Dodd’s, Jarvis & Olusoga, 2009). In spite of this, it is clear that most theorists uphold the ethos that play is imperative to a child’s learning and development. There is a wide range of different studies and theories which helps us develop our own perception of what play is. In my personal experience I have found play to be a way of expressive our emotions, exploring and learning new things, thus
Before diving into my research, I reflected on the knowledge I already knew regarding play and play based learning. From experience, I know that play is an enjoyable activity for children, and even some adults. I know that there are different ways one can play. For example, playing with others is known as cooperative play and playing alone is considered solitary play. There are different types of play. For example, there is dress up or pretend games, which is considered dramatic, play and there is playing with building blocks which is constructive play. After my reflection I realized that I was more knowledgeable on the action of playing rather then the benefits of it.
Play is thought to be of central importance for young children. The idea of play has developed along with the history. It is necessary for the early childhood teachers to know some theoretical perspectives on play in order to further understand play and better working with children. This essay will introduce two theories of play, one of the traditional theories of play, which is The Recreational or Relaxation theory and one of the contemporary theories which is The Psychoanalytic theory. In the essay, these two theories of play will be compared and contrast, the implications for practice in the early childhood setting will be explained and the role of the teacher would be classified.
Children play because it allows them to make new friends, to explore new textures, it passes time for them in a fun way and it gives them an opportunity to develop new skills, e.g. communication skills through communicating
Psychology: An International Discipline in Context. Melbourne: Cengage Learning Australia. Ginsburg, K. (2006). The importance of play in promoting healthy child development and maintaining strong parent-child bond.
When children are playing they are most likely playing with others which give children the chance to form relationships and make emotional bonds with somebody other than their parents or caregivers. Play can also help children gain self-esteem and make them feel confident about themselves as they will feel empowered and like they are in control. Finally, play can support emotional development as when they are engaged in play and feel involved it will give them a positive experience which will make them feel capable of doing things and will encourage them to take part in certain activities again which will promote their
I reviewed Weil and Pascal’s (1990) article, The Place of Verbal Games in the Framework of In-patient Group Psychotherapy with Late Adolescents which was published in the Journal of Group Psychotherapy. This article focused the importance of games for the social and emotional development of children and adults. The article expounds on the significance of group therapy that contains the use of verbal games in a psychiatric setting with late adolescents who suffer from instability in their environments. The authors described each game that was used in group therapy along with the significance of the game as a therapeutic and a diagnostic tool (Weil & Pascal, 1990). There are clear limitations of this research that provide for an argument for
I have read numerous articles on the benefits of play for children. And have witnessed it, first hand. Yet, I was looking for additional modern studies on this subject that expand to show more likeness to the fact, as opposed to opinions. Two scientists, that had actual studies which I have included links to are: A Researcher named Jaak Panksepp of Washington State University. Furthermore, Sergio Pellis, at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, is also a Researcher. They have diverse enlightenments of why play is needed for child development, but I consolidated both in this journal essay since both seemed equally important. Pellis says that animal studies did support his ideas, but that this can’t prove that play affects humans
In Kindergarten school, some parent believes play is the best way for young children to learn the conceptions, skills, and set a solid foundation for later school and life success. In the other hand, many parents disagree and believe play is a waste of time, messy, noisy, and uneducationall. I believe play is not waste of time, but it something worth to fight for, in this presentation I would show parent the main importance of some of the numerous kinds of play, and why play is a fundamental basis for improving children’s ability to succeed in school and life.