Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Dallas, 2007. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 292-298)

This study used an analytic/qualitative method to gather data about young siblings and their interactions with each other as they engaged in literacy-related play activities in the home. The mothers of four sets of siblings collected the initial data in their rural home settings. The fieldwork took place over a period of eight weeks and included written observational notes of literacy-related play events. Detailed descriptions of the interactions were coded according to five research-related themes. They were 1) the older siblings take the role of the more capable other, 2) the older siblings initiate more activities and demonstrate teacher-like behaviors,3) the younger siblings follow the lead of the older sibling, 4) the younger siblings seek the approval of the older sibling, and 5) young siblings share an intimate experience with each other when engaged in literacy-related activities. The study also identified an additional theme of balanced/shared roles. More research is necessary in the area of sibling interactions between twins and siblings that are close in age.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University / The main purpose of this study is to discover the attitudes of parents toward play and to reveal how they recognize the play needs of their children at home and in the hospital. Play, especially in the preschool period, is an integral part of every child's life and necessary for his continuing development. The child entering the hospital brings with him his everyday needs along with those presented by his particular illness. Thus play as a tool for the child's growth and as a medium for expression of feeling would seem even more important in the potentially traumatic hospital setting. [TRUNCATED]

While there is evidence of early creativity in children’s colorful drawings, original stories, and elaborate games of pretense, conducting research on the topic of children’s creativity can be challenging. In particular, the most commonly used measures of creativity have been shown to be problematic, particularly with young children. Therefore, an important goal of this dissertation was to develop appropriate laboratory tasks for assessing children’s creativity. At Time 1, 75 4- and 5-year-old children (38 boys, 37 girls) were asked to complete two new measures of creativity – a storytelling task and a drawing task. In addition, the children were interviewed about whether they engaged in elaborated role play (i.e., pretending in which children imagine and act out the part of a character on a regular basis). The results indicated that the laboratory measures of creativity were both related to engaging in elaborated role play as well as related to each other (independent of age and language ability), suggesting that the measures were effective in assessing young children’s creativity, and that they were specifically associated with elaborated role play. Another goal of this dissertation was to examine the continuity of individual differences in creativity from preschool age to middle school age with a longitudinal follow-up assessment of the children from Time 1 approximately eight years later when they were 11 to 14 years old. 41 children (21 boys, 20 girls) participated at Time 2 and completed a large battery of creativity measures, including tasks similar to the laboratory measures at Time 1 as well as additional measures that varied in whether they included social content. Contrary to hypotheses, laboratory measures of creativity at Time 1 did not predict any of the measures of creativity at Time 2. However, the creativity ratings of the role play characters from Time 1 were related to all of the indicators of creativity eight years later. In addition, having an imaginary companion at Time 2 was concurrently related to several measures of creativity. These results suggest that elaborated role play might be particularly relevant for children’s developing creativity. This dissertation includes previously published co-authored material.

Background: Play impairments in autism are intrinsic to its definition but there is continuing debate about whether they are specific to symbolic play or found across all play behaviours. In typically developing children, play development is strongly linked to other aspects of development, to the quality of caregiving behaviour and attachment relationships; however, these associations are less well characterised in autism. Three previous empirical studies have found links between play and attachment quality in autism similar to those in typical development. Additionally, a number of recent studies have investigated patterns of child attachment in autism, finding a range of attachment styles, which argue against primary attachment difficulties in the disorder. Rationale: This study aimed to i) make a detailed study of the early development of play in autism; ii) explore for the first time the role of caregiver play; iii) extend the small literature on the relationship between child play and child attachment. Method: 49 children aged two and five years diagnosed with core autism were group-matched with 45 neurotypical children on gender and non-verbal development. Detailed structured video-coding of both child and caregiver play in a naturalistic setting was made at baseline (T1), after seven months (T2), and after 13 months (T3), using Noldus Observer. Child attachment behaviour was assessed using the Brief Attachment Screening Questionnaire at T1 and T3. Results: Children with autism showed similar patterns of play change over time to controls but at a delayed rate; with more simple exploratory play and reduced advanced functional play at all three timepoints and reduced symbolic play development identified by T3. Group differences were also found in caregiver play. Quality and complexity of child and caregiver play were largely associated. Emergence of more advanced forms of child play in both groups was predicted by level of previous child play; and also level of caregiver play, but only if it was developmentally appropriate. Children with autism showed similar responses to caregiver behaviour as typical children, despite their core social impairments. By contrast, simple play reduced over time in both groups irrespective of the nature of caregiver play. There were group differences in child attachment behaviours at T1 and T3. However, attachment quality showed no relationship to child play development. Conclusions: The play of children with autism was generally delayed compared to controls, with no evidence of a specific delay in symbolic play. In both autism and typical development, emergence of more complex forms of play was predicted by developmentally sensitive caregiver play, consistent with the Vygotskian theory of a 'zone of proximal development'. Developmental reduction in simple play however was independent of caregiver, consistent with Piagetian theory of children as 'lone scientists' in this context. Child attachment and play quality were not specifically related.

Parents’ perspectives on their children’s outdoor risky play (ORP) can influence their engagement in it and the risk-navigation strategies they adopt. Until now, the perspectives of parents who regularly navigate threats to their safety, such as military members in combat arms occupations (CAOs) in the Canadian Armed Forces, and who have second-hand information on war and combat, such as female partners of members in CAOs, have been excluded from research. Conducting research with members in CAOs and their female partners can provide important understanding for experiences with risk, danger, injury, traditional gender roles, and ORP perspectives. I thus recruited and conducted semi-structured interviews with military members in CAOs (female = 1, male = 6) in the Canadian Armed Forces and 16 female partners of members actively serving in CAOs. Individuals could participate if they had a child in the 4-12 age range. I selected this age range for the study due to it being important for children’s adoption of safety strategies. I addressed three questions in stand-alone papers in my thesis: 1) “Do experiences in the military influence members’ in CAOs perspectives on their children’s ORP?”; 2) “What are military mothers’ perspectives on their children’s outdoor risky play and how may these perspectives be shaped by their military experiences?”; and 3) “How do gender expectations for female partners of members in CAOs influence their perspectives on children’s ORP?” I used risk and sociocultural theory to inform my approach to research questions 1 and 2 and conducted a reflexive thematic analysis. The results of my study addressing research question 1 were twofold: 1) Members in CAOs believe ORP provides children with opportunities that challenge excessive safety restrictions promoted in Canadian society; and (2) the work experiences of members in CAOs in the Canadian Armed Forces influenced their distinction between children’s ORP and dangerous play-related injuries. In response to research question 2, I found that female partners believed (1) ORP in close physical proximity to strangers and cars is dangerous for children; (2) ORP should not result in children experiencing serious injuries; and (3) outdoor risky play can teach children to assess and manage risks. I employed poststructural feminist theory, feminist methodologies, and critical discourse analysis to address question 3. My results were twofold: (1) Military mothers resist discursively produced pressures to subscribe to overprotective parenting during their children’s ORP; and (2) traditional gender discourses in Canadian society shape military mothers’ feelings of responsibility for their children’s ORP safety. The results from my research suggest that exposure to information on war and combat can influence parents’ perspectives on their children’s ORP. Further, they suggest that societal values, such as gender role expectations and pressure on mothers to engage in overprotective parenting, can influence parents’ fears for their children’s safety and the ORP they encourage and restrict.

Hearing impairment is a major impairment that disrupts one of the most important functions and needs of the human being, namely, to communicate. Due to elusive understanding of the phenomenon, hearing impairment is seen as one of the serious anomalies, next to visual impairment. Hearing loss has adverse effects on speech, language, cognitive and psychosocial development, and subsequently affects educational and vocational attainment. There is also an effect of hearing loss on behavioural and social functions, as well as general quality of life. The effects of hearing loss are different for everyone, but most hearingimpaired adolescents suffer some social, psychological and physical problems as a result of their hearing loss. It is against this background that the study sought to explore whether the communication between the adolescent with a hearing impairment and a social worker or a counsellor could be improved. The researcher therefore implemented the use of Gestalt play techniques with adolescents who live with a hearing impairment with the aim of exploring their experiences of communication by means of these techniques. Gestalt play techniques were utilised in order to gain insight into the experiences of adolescents when making use of these techniques for communication. The research was conducted by means of a qualitative research approach. The study was exploratory and descriptive in nature and the type of research was applied. The vii researcher made use of an instrumental case study as a research design. Non-probability sampling methods were used, as the sample was not randomly selected. Specific criteria were specified for selection of five participants. Data collection by means of semistructured interviews was conducted after group sessions were held to explore the experiences of adolescents with a hearing impairment of communicating through Gestalt play techniques. During the research, play techniques were used to enhance communication and the ‘sense of self’. There was, however, no exploration of specific issues and therapy was not provided. Data was analysed by making use of thematic analysis by identifying themes or patterns in the data. The empirical findings confirmed different experiences by participants in terms of communication by means of play techniques. Techniques selected were non-threatening, easy to understand and not for therapeutic purposes. The use of contact functions enhanced the sense of self, which allowed participants to express their emotions. The participants indicated drawing, clay and drawing a safe place as useful and positive experiences. The use of play techniques and activities that were abstract in nature were not generally experienced in a positive manner. The participants were supportive in the group setting as they had shared experiences and understandings, which enabled them to talk freely and openly. Their need to connect with peers, especially having a hearing impairment in common, bonded them. Therefore, play techniques to enhance communication had a positive emotional effect on participants as heightened awareness of emotions were experienced. Recommendations for practice can be highlighted as social workers or counsellors should be knowledgeable regarding adolescent development and hearing impairment as a phenomenon, about various communication forms and should be able to adjust their communication style when communicating with hearing-impaired children/adolescents. It is also important that time is spend on the establishment of a therapeutic relationship with the child/adolescent. / Mini Dissertation (MSW (Play-based Intervention))--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Social Work and Criminology / MSW (Play-based Intervention) / Restricted

This pilot study investigated the impact of group activity play therapy (GAPT) on displaced orphans aged 10 to 12 years living in a large children.s village in Uganda. Teachers and housemothers identified 60 preadolescents exhibiting clinical levels of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. The participants ethnicity was African and included an equal number of females and males. Participants were randomly assigned to GAPT (n = 30) or reading mentoring (RM; n = 30), which served as an active control. Preadolescents in both treatment groups participated in an average of 16 sessions, twice weekly with each session lasting 50 minutes. Sessions were held in the school located within the village complex. A two (group) by two (repeated measures) split plot ANOVA was used to analyze the data. According to teacher reports using the Teacher Report Form (TRF) and housemother reports using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), children receiving the GAPT intervention demonstrated statistically significant decreases (p < .025) in internalizing behaviors (TRF: p < .001; CBCL: p < .001 ) and externalizing behaviors (TRF: p = .006; CBCL: p < .001) from pretest to posttest compared to children who received RM. The GAPT intervention demonstrated a large treatment effect on reducing orphaned childrenÆs internalizing problems (TRF: ?p2= .213; CBCL: ?p2 = . 244) and a moderate to large treatment effect on reducing externalizing problems (TRF: ?p2= .121; CBCL: ?p2 = .217). The statistical, practical, and clinical significance of the findings provided strong, preliminary support for using GAPT as a developmentally and culturally responsive school-based intervention for troubled Ugandan orphans.

The United Nations have issued concerns regarding children’s right to play, which is one of the rights that are written in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). One prominent concern revolves around how increasing educational requirements push the right to free play aside in order to offer education to children. This study aims to shine light on how preschool teachers in Sweden describes free play, how hey motivate it and how they work with it. This study is based on interviews with five preschool teachers to get their understanding of these questions. By using theoretical concepts of: instutionalization, the threatened play and play enrichment, the information told by the participants have been analyzed.    The result of the study shows that play is rated highly by the teachers and that they motivate it mostly from the perspective of its function to teach. Even though the preschool teachers work in different ways, all of them aspires to foster free play in preschool. However, the study shows that there is a tendency from the adults to only define something as play if they find a purpose in what the children are doing. If they don’t find a purpose in the children’s actions then it is not considered play and gets interrupted by the teacher. This means that there is a risk that some play is not approved by the teachers in preschool, and that the children might be limited in their ways to play.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / Judgment methodology was employed to provide a qualitative description of mother/child interaction during infant play. Videoclips of 40 9-month-old infants in a free play situation with their mothers were rated by a panel of 10 judges using a series of 9 point Likert scales. Thirteen qualitative items, grouped into the five different areas of communication, coordination, engagement, affect, and overall quality of interaction, were rated from low or absent (0) to consistently high (8). Each mother/child dyad was assessed on two different segments. The reliability of the scales for assessing the mother/child interaction (mean ratings of 10 judges) ranged from .65 (mismatch) to .81 (mutual responsiveness) with an overall mean effective reliability of .77. There was a high intercorrelation among individual variables and overall quality of the interaction suggesting that no one of the rated qualities was more predictive of the overall mother/child interaction. Differences found in the rated quality of mother/child interaction between the two segments raise questions regarding the validity of conclusions about the overall quality of interaction based on a single short segment. Results are discussed in terms of the psychometric features of the scales and in terms of the mother/child interactional patterns. Suggestions for revising the methodology and the assessment tool are made to improve reliability and validity. More studies are necessary to validate the usefulness of the judgment methodology as an alternative approach to studying the quality of mother/child interaction. / 2031-01-01