Effect of Client Centered Play Therapy on Old age Home Residents with Symptoms of Depression

Abstract

Whilst client centered play therapy has mostly been associated with children, researchers have recently started exploring the benefits of this therapy while dealing with adults and the elderly. The purpose ofthis study was to investigate the effectiveness of client centered play therapy on depressive symptoms of old age home residents. It was hypothesized that the participants in the experimental group will have an improvement in their symptoms of depression as compared to the wait-list control group. For that purpose, a quantitative research approach was taken to gather the data from 6 residents of Gills Shelter Old Age Home aged 65 and above. Participants were divided into two groups. The three odd participants (2 females and 1 male) were placed in the experimental group whereas the three even participants (1 female and 2 males) were placed in the wait-list control group. Data collection was done by using a consent form and a demographic form whereas Geriatric Depression Scale: Short Form (GDS-SF, 1986) was used to obtain the pre and post-test results to check for the symptoms of depression of both, experimental and waitlist control group. The experimental group were provided with an eight week client centered play therapy intervention plan, which was provided to the wait-list control group, after the post-test analysis of the results. Statistically significant findings of the data revealed that the depressive level ofthe participants in the experimental group reduced greatly (M=5.333) as compared to the depressive symptoms of those in the control group (M=12.000). The significance ofthe current study draws attention to the efficacy of client centered play therapy on depressive symptoms of old age home residents and how it can be used to improve the mental health of the elderly population. Valuable implications, limitations and recommendations have been provided to benefit future researches in this area.