What Is Play Therapy?

The Association for Play Therapy defines play therapy as “the systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process wherein trained play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth and development."

Play therapy is a modality used across mental health professions, which counselors can specialize in or incorporate into their practice. However, some counselors may consider play therapy as a distinct discipline or simply not consider using it in their work.

Kami Tran, PhD, NCC, LPC-S (AR), RPT-S, is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas’s counseling program. She has extensive experience utilizing play therapy as a counselor and incorporating the practice as a counselor educator. She offers a straightforward explanation of why play therapy is an important modality for counselors.

“I think that therapy is really hard emotionally,” says Dr. Tran. “It’s a lot. Physically, it’s a lot, and whenever we kind of dig into those really deep tender emotions, especially with kiddos, their capacity may not be as wide as an adult for all these different reasons. To me, this is the way that therapy is accessible to kiddos.”

Play therapy may be practiced by any master’s-level mental health profession, but Dr. Tran sees a particular connection between the modality and the counseling profession.

“In the age we’re in, where the mental health need is so great, I am all-hands-on-deck, regardless of discipline, especially when it comes to children, because it’s so hard to find people who want to work with children and who want to engage in play therapy. What’s different is that play therapy is embedded in a lot of counselor education programs now, and so that makes it more accessible. Play therapy is really married well within counselor education programs.”

The use of play therapy is primarily associated with children ages 3–12. While it is true that play therapy is particularly appropriate for children, it can be an appropriate model for adolescents and adults as well.

“I find it can be really helpful with adults who have a lot of chronic early childhood trauma,” says Dr. Tran. “Because so much of play gets lost whenever we don’t have our attachment needs met, and trauma disrupts our attachment needs. It can be so nourishing to kind of go back and repair those early attachment wounds. Play is how we experience connection and how we experience adventure, and we can learn so much about ourselves and human connection through play.

“There’s been new research coming looking at play therapy with the use of the geriatric population, specifically those in memory care facilities. It is really not just for children. I think everybody could benefit from a little more play in their lives, regardless of their developmental age.”

Play therapy is often discussed in terms of directive and nondirective therapy, perhaps due to a conception that children need direction for therapy to be effective. This may be misunderstanding the child’s role in play therapy, according to Dr. Tran.

“One of our gold standards is child-centered play therapy, which is a nondirective modality because it’s based and rooted in the child gets to be in control of that environment and direct how the session goes,” explains Dr. Tran. “There’s so much evidence that supports it, and it’s such an important theoretical orientation. And when I think about even directive play therapy, there’s cognitive behavioral play therapy, Gestalt play therapy—Adlerian play therapy has a few more directive elements to it. Even in those modalities, the child is still in charge, so I don’t really see a huge discernment between directive and nondirective when it comes to play therapy. It’s more about how much you are bringing interventions in. Like with any good clinician, you need to have a strong foundation but be willing to pull from lots of different theoretical modalities or interventions.”

One element that makes play therapy stand out among mental health practices is a substantial requirement for otherwise-nonclinical instruments. These toys and games can take many forms, and research is ongoing into additional resources, including video games. Counselors should not be deterred from engaging in play therapy based on any resource limitations they face, says Dr. Tran.

“A true child play therapy center does have certain toys that fit certain different themes, like a nurturing theme and themes of aggression. Those things are really important, especially when we’re talking about evidence-based care. You also want to have a lot of diversity in your toys and lots of multicultural representation in your toys. Accessibility can be such a barrier for so many clinicians who want to do the work with children but don’t have access to those supplies. That doesn’t mean that it’s not play therapy or that it’s not valid because you didn’t have XYZ, right? Make sure that you’re informed with what the gold standards are in play therapy and use those guidelines as a tool.”

For counselors interested in learning more or receiving training in play therapy, Dr. Tran recommends connecting with the Association for Play Therapy.

“There are national conferences every year, and they’re intentionally hosted in different parts of the country so that they can be more accessible. If you don’t have the accessibility to go to the national conferences, look at your state. Most states have a play therapy association—plug in to those state level play therapy associations and attend their conferences. The Texas Association for Play Therapy throws a conference every year, and that’s open to anyone who’s interested in play therapy to attend.”

Dr. Tran encourages all counselors who work with children or are interested in doing so to explore play therapy and how it can enhance their work.

“It’s a really beautiful practice, and we need more play therapists. If you’re serving kiddos, it is really the gold standard for providing good care. Please look into play therapy training. Make sure it’s through an approved play therapy provider, and just be really curious about it.”

Kami Ball Tran, PhD, NCC, LPC-S (AR), RPT-S, is a Clinical Assistant Professor and an experienced mental health practitioner specializing in play therapy and trauma responsive care. As the founder of The Healing Place Therapies, Dr. Tran has over a decade of experience providing evidence-based therapy to children, adolescents, and families, with a focus on attachment, trauma, and family resilience. Her work emphasizes health equity, including pioneering telemental health initiatives for high-risk populations and conducting community-based needs assessments to improve access to care. A dedicated educator and researcher, Dr. Tran integrates her clinical expertise into teaching and scholarship, promoting mental health equity through innovative interventions, supervision, and advocacy.

**Opinions and thoughts expressed in NBCC Visions Newsletter articles belong to the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or practices of NBCC and Affiliates.