ABSTRACT
The modality of play therapy addresses professional concerns that arise in this modern age of litigation and awareness. Professional responsibility clearly emphasizes working within our scope of practice, being aware of our own competency, professional limits, and training. Clarification of informed consent and confidentiality have guidelines in each state and province. Children’s confidentiality must be honored under the limits of the law. If child abuse is involved, reporting is mandated no matter how information is obtained in the playroom. Children must have a safe place to share. Repetitive symbolic play is a therapeutic process. Repetitive symbolic play with puppets is purposeful and therapeutic in that it allows children to actively engage with past emotional experiences while altering these outcomes through play. Touch is an ethical dilemma in the playroom. According to Barnard and Brazelton, “Touch functions on many levels of adaptation, first to make survival possible, and then to make life meaningful”.
