SPECIAL SECTION


The Most Impactful Play Therapy Research of the Past 40 Years


| YI-JU CHENG, PhD, LPC, NCC, RPT P lay therapy research provides empirical information that


grounds and advances clinicians’ approach to therapy in response to the evolving needs of clients and the society as a whole. It also strengthens the quality of play therapy training and brings external credibility to play therapy. To celebrate the 40th birthday of APT, some of the Research Committee members reviewed the play therapy research articles published over


the past 40 years and


 to the play therapy profession due to their rigorous research design, clinical implications, and/or research inspiration. It was a challenging task and the Research Committee values all play therapy research            top picks from the Research Committee along with our rationale in alphabetical order.


  analytic review of treatment outcomes.Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 36 


10 | PLAYTHERAPY | December 2022 | www.a4pt.org


Rationale: This article is one of the most cited play therapy research            provider, setting, child age, child gender, and presenting concern. This article importantly helped to legitimize play therapy as an evidence-supported intervention for children back in the 2000’s.


 of child parent relationship therapy for adopted children with


attachment disruptions. Journal


of Counseling and Development, 92  


Rationale: The researchers utilized a randomized, control group to investigate the effects of CPRT.


 behavioral problems and parental empathy. This study helped         The study was conducted in real world settings in the community,


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