SPECIAL SECTION P


lay in therapy has a more than century-old history. In the early days, play was seen as one of the elements of a therapeutic process.


When play was incorporated into multiple theoretical perspectives, it became play therapy. Countless articles and books describe the history of play in therapy and play therapy. Likewise, the seminal play therapy    have illuminated many things. Among them is diversity in play therapy, which will be explored in this article through multiple         and the tools of our trade and (viz., toys and playrooms).


       necessary to note that culture is only one facet of diversity. Culture and diversity are not


terms to be used synonymously. Many play therapy writings     aspects and factors, yet never fully conceptualize the broader term of diversity. Diversity includes race, age, nationality, ethnicity, culture, gender identity, physical and mental ability, education, political, spiritual, and religious beliefs, socioeconomic status, geographic location, and much


more (Ideal, n.d.). While the term diversity has multiple meanings, for the purpose of this article and to illustrate two conceptualizations                                         


Dictionary, n.d.b). Diversity and the Association for Play Therapy’s


Leadership and Members Diversity within the Association for Play Therapy (APT) has been scarce since its inception and throughout the past 40 years. In fact, the co-founders were two White males, and all the initial board members were White, which included three males and four females. According to Kathryn Lebby, CAE, CMP (personal communication, March 30,


2022), President and CEO of APT, the organization consisted of mostly White, middle-aged females in APT’s earlier years. Over the years, the diversity within the organization, including race and ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation, has slowly gained some ground. However, and unfortunately, the data to measure this growth is not available since the organization had not solicited demographic information until it sought out this information in a member survey in August of 2020 (Lebby, March 30, 2022). The impetus to begin collecting demographic information came from one of APT’s Board Members, Dr. Anne Stewart, during a conversation that took place in December 2019 during her oversight visit while serving as Board Chair (2019-2020) (Lebby, 2022). The organization sought to measure how well they addressed issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) and published survey APT Program Survey Summary (2020b). The survey collected information on personal characteristics (gender, generation, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, country of residence), professional characteristics (mental health discipline, primary work setting, number of years practicing play therapy), and APT membership and credentialing (length of APT membership, member engagement, credentialed play therapists). The survey also asked four open-ended questions related to membership knowledge of DE&I and how well APT was addressing, welcoming, and supporting diverse populations. According to the report, “Data analysis revealed that members’ attitudes towards DE&I, and APT’s effectiveness in supporting DE&I varies according to the individual’s race/ethnic background, and participation in APT and/or Branch programs,”


(p. 1). As a result


  resource page on the APT website, adding diversity training as part of the Registered Play Therapist (RPT) credentialing requirements, adding diversity criteria to its awards program, increasing diversity on APT management committees, and focusing on seeking out members from diverse backgrounds to contribute article and journal submissions as well as conference proposals. Additionally, prior to the survey and in response to televised incidents of racial injustices in 2020 (i.e., Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd), APT (2020a) announced, “As many institutions and organizations struggle with how to address systemic racism and racial inequity, APT also recognizes the need to do things differently,” (para. 1). In this membership email blast on June 16, 2020, APT announced the establishment of the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Awareness (IDEA) Team. The IDEA Team consists of six APT members and staff from diverse backgrounds.


APT plans to survey membership again in 2023 to measure the impact of their efforts on membership diversity, member knowledge, support, and promotion of DE&I within the organization (Lebby, 2022). Member demographics are now searchable in APT’s membership directory, which will allow for increased membership connection for diverse


www.a4pt.org | June 2022 | PLAYTHERAPY | 11


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