ABSTRACT
In playing, the infant/child/adult bridges the inner world with the outer world within and through the transitional space. Transposed to the analytic relationship, playing is the ultimate achievement of psychoanalysis, because only through playing can the self be discovered and strengthened. The "employment of a rich imagination whilst playing" means that the child is making use of the third area, which is a sign of health. D. W. Winnicott, more concerned with the playing child or adult than with the content of play, emphasizes the way the individual uses play to process self-experience and, at the same time, to communicate. The mastering of anxiety is another feature of playing: Anxiety is always a factor in a child’s play, and often it is a major factor. The theme of playing in relation to anxiety is not really elaborated in Winnicott’s work, perhaps because his focus is on the healthy, creative process of playing.
