A hop, skip and a jump towards evaluating social interaction and learning through play at a child and adolescent inpatient treatment program

Abstract

Background: The number of inpatient mental health facilities for children and adolescents in the United States is growing rapidly. While undergoing inpatient treatment, children and adolescents can benefit from innovative play opportunities designed to foster social interaction and learning.

Methods: The Playful Learning Landscapes (PLL) initiative is a group of projects designed to transform everyday spaces into opportunities for playful learning. As a part of this initiative, two designs-Lifesize Ruler and Jumping Feet-were installed in an inpatient mental health facility for children and adolescents in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.

Results: Results of pre-installation and post-installation naturalistic observations suggested that social interactions, the use of STEM-related language and 21st century skills, including confidence, increased after interacting with the installations.

Conclusions: While previous research on PLL projects has demonstrated the efficacy of transforming public spaces into places for playful learning, this research provides support that, even in private, targeted settings, using a trauma-informed approach, children and adolescents, can reap the benefits of playful learning.

Keywords: adolescence; hospitalization; mental health; play; school children.