Review of Play in child development and psychotherapy: Toward empirically supported practice.

Reviews the book, Play in child development and psychotherapy: Toward empirically supported practice by Sandra Russ (see record 2003-88219-000). Clinical child psychologists have used play as a vehicle for psychotherapy for over 75 years. However, current demands of managed care systems emphasize the need for time limited and empirically supported treatments. Although play techniques are commonly incorporated by psychologists of various theoretical orientations, Sandra Russ points out in this book the disparity between the theoretical role of play in psychotherapy and the actual evidence supporting these techniques. The first four chapters of the book provide literature reviews of the history, theory, and research on pretend play, considering both normative and clinical populations. The next three chapters focus more specifically on the current developments in understanding play from research and practice perspectives. Finally, Russ considers future objectives for researchers and practitioners who seek to expand and enhance the utility of play techniques in child psychotherapy. Russ's book clearly provides a basis for understanding the current state of the child play therapy field while strongly emphasizing the need for additional research. This book may be useful for practitioners who strive to provide empirically supported treatments because it provides theoretical and available research perspectives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)