Social Psychology of Play

Children have a natural desire to play. Play serves the very important purpose of exploring one's environment. As children grow older, however, the environment created by significant adults such as parents, relatives, and teachers might either encourage or discourage play. The conceptions of play held by adults are shaped by their own attitudes, but are also molded by government and societal concerns about the value of play. Thus, what starts as a natural behavior might increase, stay at the same level, or decrease depending upon the child's personality and the environment created by adults and, in some instances, regulated by government agencies. Play is no doubt enjoyable, but it also helps the development and maturation of infants and children. However, we have seen a trend toward diminishing opportunities to play at schools. This trend is troublesome given the multiple benefits associated with play.

Consider Case A, a 4-year-old girl, playing with her mother. A is pretending to be a doctor conducting surgery in the operation room. Her mother is her assistant during the complicated operation. The mother is quite surprised by A's vocabulary, understanding of complicated words, and also by her ability to communicate information during the game. At one point during the game, A tells her, in a serious tone, to be more organized and focus on the task at hand, bringing out the importance of these skills to successfully finish the operation. The mother enjoys very much playing with her daughter and is very pleased to see how A has learned the importance of concentration and organization to achieve things in life; something that this mother constantly emphasizes as a family value.

The scenario above exemplifies make-believe play. A has probably been exposed to information about doctors and surgeries and decides to bring this information into a game. A not only enjoys play, which is reason enough to continue encouraging this activity, but the play also provides her with a great opportunity to solidify new acquired information.

Play has a central role in humans. From a very early age, infants and children engage in spontaneous play. However, this natural, innate tendency to play can be facilitated or hindered by the child's environment. Parents, relatives, teachers, and at a higher level, government agencies have beliefs about the importance of play that shape attitudes toward this important activity. There is no unanimous agreement about the importance of play. This lack of consensus, however, is troublesome given that the vast majority of research in this area supports the crucial role of play in human development.

Play greatly influences children's development and facilitates the acquisition of importance skills such as reading, self- and emotional regulation, and the ability to share and cooperate, among other things. However, we have lately seen a movement toward diminishing opportunities to play in schools, especially in countries such as the United States and England.

Even with widespread support for the importance of play in children's development, some feel that there is a movement toward diminishing the importance of play in schools in many countries.

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