Latest / The Play Therapy Circle / Episode 6: Non Directive vs Directive Approaches in Play Therapy

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Episode 6: Non Directive vs Directive Approaches in Play Therapy · The Play Therapy Circle

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Hi there and welcome to the Play Therapy Circle.
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Before we begin, Please note this podcast is for
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informational and educational purposes only.
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It does not provide therapeutic advice and listening does not
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create a client therapist relationship.
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All views expressed are my own and any case example shared have
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been de identified to protect privacy.
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If you're seeking personal support, please reach out to a
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qualified mental health professional in your area.
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Hi and welcome to an episode of the Play Therapy Circle.
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I'm Kylie Ellison, a therapist, clinical supervisor and play
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therapy trainer, and I'm so grateful you're here.
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This podcast is a space for thoughtful, soulful
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conversations about child centred therapy, play based work
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and what it means to show up with presence and compassion,
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both for our clients and for ourselves.
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Whether you're a seasoned play therapist, a student just
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starting out, or someone deeply passionate about working with
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children, you belong here. Welcome back to the Play Therapy
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Circle podcast. I'm your host, Kylie Ellison,
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and I am so glad you are here. Happy Thursday everyone,
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wherever you are in the world listening to this podcast today.
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Welcome. I told you guys last week I was
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going to try and make the commitment that I was going to
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record this during business hours and I wouldn't be living
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my tenants of CPT if I wasn't congruent.
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So guess what? It's really late at night.
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I'm recording this zoo. I think it's a good thing that
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at least I'm getting it done. So I'm committed to the process.
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You guys, it's just a little bit later in the evening than I had
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planned. So welcome to our Play Therapy
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Circle family. I hope you have had a wonderful
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week. I am excited as always to talk
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all things child centre play therapy.
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And so episode 6 today is tackling that question of the
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difference between directive and non directive approaches in play
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therapy. So as always, I hope that this
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is useful and helpful to you. I just need to mention I am in a
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different room today and I am also sitting up next to my dog
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Molly, who has joined us tonight.
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So if you do hear Molly in the background, she also says hi.
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OK, so we are going to take a deep dive in to this topic and,
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and I guess I want to really unpack and help us to understand
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what each of these particular approaches entail, what they
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look like in practise and I guess some of those key
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differences. What I love about the community
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we are fostering here for all of you following along in our play
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therapy circle family is that we all appreciate and value and
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recognise each other's approaches to play therapy.
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You are all welcome within the circle.
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So I think that I will be keen to unpack those different
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approaches, share a bit about what I do, but recognising that
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for you listening at home or on your walk or wherever I am
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reaching your listening ears today, that this is a topic of
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conversation that honours our own journeys and our own
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frameworks for practise. So I'm looking forward to
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sharing all of the components of both directive and non directive
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today. So let's dive in.
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So I think that where I would like to start with this
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broadcast today is starting really from the beginning in
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terms of those definitions or from those kind of core
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concepts. I think that's helpful to ground
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us in understanding I guess the difference between both.
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And I think it's something particularly for beginning play
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therapist that you might be navigating or seeking to
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understand a little bit more about in terms of that
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difference between directive and non directive play therapy.
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So when we're talking about directive play therapy, we're
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referencing or talking about when a therapist takes a more
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structured role in the playroom. So the therapist might guide
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sessions with specific activities, games, testing
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hypotheses, all different ways that they can help a child to
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practise certain skills or work through particular challenges.
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There's obviously many examples of this.
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There might be just as a kind of scenario I'm just putting out
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there. It's not based on anything in
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particular, but potentially you might have a situation where a
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therapist uses puppets to rehearse coping strategies for
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anxiety or a situation that the child might encounter that they
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want to prepare them for or providing say structured art
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activities to help with emotional expression and
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regulation. That is certainly where we see
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directive play therapy sitting. In contrast, we have non
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directive play therapy which is sometimes also referred to as
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child centred play therapy, which is obviously my area of
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practise. So we take in child centred play
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therapy a slightly different approach where we really have
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the child leading the way in terms of that agenda and
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progress and trajectory of work in the playroom.
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So we provide that environment. The toys is we have our language
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that we use to help support kids in that space, but we align with
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the idea or the intention behind the child choosing what they
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will do and how they will express themselves and work
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through their issues in the playroom.
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So we don't provide a direct structure in terms of the play.
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So both of these approaches are very important in play therapy
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and our field in Australia and overseas.
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And so I want to talk a little bit about unpacking I guess
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those distinguishing characteristics or differences
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there because I think that might be helpful too.
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So what do we know about those key differences between
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directive and non directive play therapy?
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So in directive play therapy, one way of conceptualising that
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could be that we could say that the therapist is more like a
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guide or an instructor. So these sessions often follow a
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plan with specific goals in mind.
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So there's an intention behind the work that the therapist is
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doing in that particular session or sessions in a directive
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space. In the non directive play
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therapy space, we can kind of look at the therapist being more
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that facilitator of that environment and that space for
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the child to explore and it has that less structure and
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opportunity for the child's choice in that space.
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I think another way that we could look at it in terms of
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those different characteristics is also unpacking or
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understanding the definition of goals in terms of directive
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versus non directive. So often times directive work
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might focus on building skills or reducing symptomology,
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whereas non directive play therapy looks at more of a
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holistic growth, self expression, the child leading
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that agenda of those goals. For example, in a directive
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session, you may have a therapist that might build out,
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pull out a resource such as a board game.
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I mentioned a few before in terms of other resources in the
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room with that specific goal. I guess around helping to build
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frustration tolerance, expand the window of tolerance as well
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helping with those elements of goals that the therapist can
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assist in in the playroom in that connection with the child.
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Versus I guess that non directive session or space where
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a child might choose resources in the room and engage in some
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of that symbolic play, say in the sand tray.
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And the therapist role is more around reflecting and tracking
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that work, making meaning of it of course as well, but not I
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guess, providing that structure or direction to that sand tray
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work. So that's a little bit in terms
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of those goal differences and I guess how those sessions might
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look. I think that what I would love
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to convey in this reflection of that directive and non directive
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space is that both have very useful functions in terms of the
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work that happens in the playroom and that intervention
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with children. So when we are looking at that
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more directive space, directive play therapy certainly has those
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benefits in being especially useful when there might be say a
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short time frame of intervention with the client or there is
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those specific goals that the family and connecting with them
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have set with the therapist for the child.
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It can also be reassuring for parents or organisations if
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they're seeking more of those concrete kind of measurable
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outcomes that can be obviously reported back then.
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So that is certainly the benefit of directive play therapy.
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In non directive play therapy or child centre play therapy as I
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live in it offers something different in terms of the child
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being viewed more, having autonomy I guess in the room
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leading as I talked about, for the agenda and the goals in the
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playroom. And by having that facilitated
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space in that non directive format, we rely on building that
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sense of trust and resilience and connection and safety so
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that children can unpack their world in their own way, in their
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own pace, rather than having a specific agenda.
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So I think one of the considerations for practise that
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I think is really important is to look at, I guess, the context
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of the sessions and what might be happening in terms of the
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delivery in certain settings. So whether it's in a school
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setting or a clinical setting or outreach, what that looks like
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in terms of suitability for those approaches and where
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directive might have a better suitability, I guess in that
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space as opposed to non directive.
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What I think when we tackle this topic, especially for beginning
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play therapists in the field, and I guess the message I want
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to connect with everyone listening at home is more that I
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think what's important is to have a framework that aligns
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with your approach to intervention.
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I think that we can certainly be drawn to different modalities
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such as directive or non directive play therapy.
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I know there's practitioners out there too that do an integrated
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approach of both as well. So we have amazing practitioners
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in our community in Australia who do incredible work in the
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space of play therapy. And we all have our strengths,
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our approaches that we're drawn to that sit for us.
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And so that is where we navigate our play therapy practise.
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So for me, and I guess every person is different in this
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space, every practitioner is different and I liken that to
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play therapy as well. I feel like everything at the
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end of the day relates back to child centre play therapy or
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play therapy directive or non directive guys.
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I can't help myself in integrating this modality into
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my everyday practise. So I think that when we're
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talking about that experience or that journey for play therapist,
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it's not dissimilar to experiences that children have
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in the playroom, right? Where we can have this
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exploration at the beginning of our play therapy journey, where
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we are understanding and getting to know the different modalities
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out there within our field of play therapy and what aligns and
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works best for us. What speaks to us and feels most
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comfortable for us and is something that we gravitate
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towards in terms of our practise with children.
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So I think that everyone is going to be different and I
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certainly come with my own background and experience and
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qualifications in the field where for me, child centre play
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therapy sits really well. So for those of you who don't
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know a bit about my background, I don't think I've actually
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talked about this ever in the podcast.
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Well, maybe I did, I don't know. Like I said guys, it's a little
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bit late, but I have been working in the Human Services
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industry now for over 20 years. Started out in acute mental
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health and child protection and then moved into non government,
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worked in community services, lots of different agencies
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before moving into private practise.
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So I've had a journey, I guess in terms of many families I've
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connected with over the last two decades and obviously working
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specifically as a child centre play therapist for the last 10
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years. And I think that it just for me
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connects well with my how I guess I view my role as a
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therapist and how I view that intervention and connection in
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the playroom. But that's going to be different
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for everyone and that's OK. I think we all have a space and
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an importance in this field. And so for me, I really like
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child centre play therapy in terms of that opportunity for me
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to sit more in that space of not having the answers or being the
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expert or wanting to lead. For me personally, that doesn't
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necessarily sit for me. So I like to offer that space
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when I connect with children on those principles of CCPT, of
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them allowing the child sorry to be able to tell their story in
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their way in their time. That is definitely something for
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me as a CCPT practitioner that I do need to navigate in terms of
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the things that I spoke about earlier in relation to location
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of delivery of services. So I've had clients I've seen in
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outreach in schools and now I have obviously in my clinic I've
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had for a while now. But that is a consideration for
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practise when we're working in that CPT space.
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And I guess also true funding restrictions and stakeholder
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expectations. And there's so many factors that
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go into the work that we do. And so I think you know what, I
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guess I'm keen to share and have you as a listener reflect on
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yourselves is what resonates for you in that space and what works
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for you. Because ultimately we will have
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those different training backgrounds, but we have that
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opportunity to bring our whole self to the playroom as well.
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So we were talking last week in Episode 5 about ultimately at
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the end of the day, that therapeutic relationship and the
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foundation of that connection between a therapist and a child
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is absolutely paramount over any of these kind of approaches that
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I've talked about today. So we value all of these
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approaches in being able to connect with kids.
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But ultimately at its core, we all agree that relationship and
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connection is super, super important.
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So I guess certainly when we're looking at some of those
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considerations in terms of work, when practitioners might lean
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towards directive or non directive, what might be part of
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those factors that are considered when we're applying
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the different modalities or sorry, the different approaches.
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So looking at certainly context and intention.
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So if we are looking at certainly very specific
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behavioural or skill based needs, directive methods could
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be very effective in that space and could be something to
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consider. Whereas if we have a child that
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needs space to explore their emotions, develop trust and need
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it to be at a slower pace, non directive or CCPT where it can
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be really helpful there as well. So I guess I want to encourage
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you guys to consider what are your own values and strengths as
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a practitioner? And I guess thinking about the
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clients that you're working with, in what context you feel
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that non directive or directive might be helpful.
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And also, I guess considering that location, so whether you
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are in a school setting, in a clinic, at home or in a
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community and what might be the ways that you can navigate that
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either in directive or non directive spaces as well.
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I think ultimately, as I ground out in this episode and really I
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guess, offer that opportunity for your own self reflection
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around what I guess I've shared today and what resonates for
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you. Because I think everyone's going
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to be different about where they lean.
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And certainly for me, I think that both directive and non
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directive have benefits unique to them and considerations for
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practise as well as key differences.
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And I think both approaches absolutely have their place in
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our profession. It's so important to consider
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our whole community and our whole circle family and when
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we're talking about play therapy.
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And I think for me personally, in terms of my own philosophy
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for practise, and I guess it doesn't come as any surprise
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because this is a podcast about child centre play therapy.
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But I certainly lean into that CCPT space 10 years down the
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line in my play therapy journey because it really does resonate
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for me, I guess, in terms of my view of working with kids.
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And really at its core, leaning into that Rogerian way of seeing
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the importance of that self actualization principle in the
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kids that I work with and their capacity for growth.
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So that is certainly all those things to consider.
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And the great thing is that we are always learning, right?
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And I always say that all of the children that I connect with in
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the playroom are my teachers. So they are always teaching me
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about my practise and offering that opportunity for self
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reflection along the way, which is great.
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So I would love to hear from you.
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I'd love to hear your reflections in terms of where
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you lean, what connects for you, and we'd love to have your
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feedback. So we post a message on our Play
17:49
at Play Therapy Circle podcast Instagram page where we let you
17:54
guys know that the episode has dropped.
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And so feel free to let us know in the comments what resonated
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for you in terms of your reflections of this topic when
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listening to this podcast today. I am so grateful that you are
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here. And look, this episode only went
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for 18 minutes this time, guys. So I'm getting much better to
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staying on time, right? That is a work in progress.
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What are we going to cover next week?
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I want to do a bit more of a dive into understanding the
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child's world through play. And I think that is so important
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when we are considering those fundamental elements of child
18:31
centre play therapy around themes, stages of play,
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understanding how they communicate to us.
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What are some of those theories that really influence child
18:42
centred play therapy in our assessment and analysis of
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understanding the child's world? So we've got a lot to talk about
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next week, you guys. But hey, thank you so much for
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your support. Genuinely.
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I am so grateful to everyone that has been listening, has
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been giving such great feedback. This podcast is intended as an
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opportunity to share all aspects of child centred play therapy
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and how we work and why we love what we do.
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So we've got so many topics to go, you guys.
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This is just the beginning. So thank you so much for joining
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me tonight because I'm recording this tonight you guys.
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So until next time, please take care of yourselves and each
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other and keep holding space for letting children's stories
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unfold in the playroom each and every day.
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I am grateful for each of you. I look forward to talking to you
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again soon. Thanks.
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Bye. Thank you so much for being here
19:39
for another episode of The Play Therapy Circle.
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If anything resonated with you today, I'd love it if you could
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follow the podcast, share it with a colleague, or leave a
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short review. It really helps others find our
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circle. And if you have a topic or
19:55
question you'd love me to explore, I'd love to hear from
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you. This space is for you and I want
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it to feel like a conversation. Until next time, take care of
20:05
yourself and remember you belong here.