Dr. Maggie Parker, Associate Professor of Counseling and Human Development, Dr. Kenneth Hergenrather, Professor of Counseling, GSEHD alumna Dr. Quinn Smelser, (PhD, Counseling), and GW student Catherine Kelly (PhD, Clinical Psychology) published a manuscript entitled, "Exploring child-centered play therapy and trauma: A systematic review of literature" in the International Journal of Play Therapy.
Per the abstract:
Researchers continue to identify increasing rates of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) and the devastating effects on individuals into adulthood. The relational focus of child-centered play therapy (CCPT) and the use of toys for personal expression better meets the developmental needs of children who experienced ACEs; however, CCPT is often not included within meta-analyses or explorations of efficacious treatments for children who experienced ACEs. To address this gap, the authors conducted a systematic literature review and explored the existing research on CCPT and ACEs. To explore the utility of CCPT to demonstrate significant therapeutic outcomes for children with a history of trauma. The authors identified 32 between-group design research studies exploring effect of CCPT on children experiencing ACES including childhood poverty, systemic discrimination, attachment difficulties, abuse, and parental incarceration. Additionally, the authors assessed the research quality and potential sources of biases within the identified studies. Findings indicate potential methodological limitations within the current studies and promising results for the use of CCPT with children who experience ACEs. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.