CLINICAL EDITOR’S COMMENTS:
Play therapy helps children with autism and their
T
he Autism Society of America (2017) described autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as a complex developmental
disorder with signs typically appearing during early childhood. ASD affects a child’s ability to communicate and interact with others. It that affects individuals differently and to varying degrees. There is no single known cause of autism, and it is considered a lifelong condition. Increased awareness and early diagnosis with intervention and access Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019) stated that one in 59 children in the United States currently have an autism diagnosis, suggesting that many play therapists will be involved with children and families affected by ASD.
family system. Parents and other family members are greatly involved in the experience of autism when a child in the family receives the diagnosis. Parents often have to develop new ways of navigating and managing their family, adapting to a condition for which they had neither planned nor prepared. Kingsley (1987) in her well-known and reframing that parents undertake when their child is diagnosed with autism. Bonis (2016) described the frequency and high levels of stress that parents of children with ASD experience, scoring higher on stress levels than other groups of parents. When working with children with ASD, it is critical to remember the unique needs and contributions that parents bring to the treatment process.
Many established ASD treatments involve a parent training component, wherein parents and/or other family members are taught how to work with their child and implement interventions and treatment approaches at home (Grant, 2017). Family members are typically present for a majority of the child’s experiences and are the people in the child’s life that remain constant, while mental health professionals are transient. Familial consistency provides parents the opportunity to become effective change agents for their child. MacDonald and Stoika (2007) stated that the best place for children with ASD to learn, grow, and achieve skills and knowledge for everyday life is during their everyday life. The most meaningful time to learn language development, relationship skills, and emotional development is during the daily routine and experiences the child encounters. Parents are typically in a prime position to navigate daily life with their child.
Stoddart (1999) conducted several case studies examining individual versus family therapy for children with ASD. Family therapy helped parents gain greater knowledge about their child’s ASD, better educate other family members, increase their understanding of their child’s behavior issues, develop a closer relationship with their child, and demonstrate more effective parenting strategies (Stoddart, 1999). Several researchers who involved parents in the treatment approach attributed positive results to parent or family involvement (e.g., Jocelyn et al., 1998; Mahoney & Perales, 2005; Solomon et al., 2007). The National Autism Center (2015) National Standards Project provided 27 evidence-based practices for working with children with autism. Among the practices were parent training and parent- implemented intervention. Research has clearly demonstrated that treatments and approaches that include parent involvement yield
Working with Parents in AutPlay® Therapy
Several family play therapy approaches have shown success in 2014), Theraplay®
(Booth & Jernbeg, 2010), and AutPlay® therapy
(Grant, 2017). Family play therapy approaches provide the opportunity for a play therapist to involve and teach protocol and interventions to parents and other family members that can be implemented in the home by the family. This type of approach creates valuable skill development repetition for the child and equips family members with tools to address struggles in everyday life in the moments they occur. Further, it empowers parents in the life-long process of providing support for their child with ASD (Grant, 2015).
AutPlay® therapy functions as a family play therapy approach that
involves the child, the parent, and, where appropriate, the whole family, including siblings and extended family members, in the therapeutic process (Grant, 2018). It is an integrative family play therapy approach that trains parents to implement special play times and use various play therapy interventions at home with their child (Grant, 2017). Parents are empowered to become co-change agents with therapists to help their child advance in skill development.
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