ABSTRACT
Although each child could be said to have their own “therapy print”—a unique path to healing within the playroom, nonetheless most children will also travel through identifiable stages commonly observed with the majority of children participating in CCPT. The four commonly observed stages in the CCPT process include the Warm-up stage, Aggressive stage, Regressive stage, and Mastery stage. Children tend to progress through these stages in a sequential manner in the order listed. Each therapeutic stage is often associated with specific types of behavior, therapeutic themes, and advances in the development of the therapist–child relationship. Each stage also presents unique challenges for the therapist.
By reading and working through the chapter exercises, the reader will be better able to:
Describe the behaviors and themes generally associated with the four stages of the CCPT process.
Recognize the three major transitional stages: Warm-up/Aggressive, Aggressive/Regressive, and Regressive/Mastery, which may appear between major stages of the play therapy process.
Understand atypical situations when tracking progress via stages is difficult or not possible.
