The role of puppetry in mental health promotion: A scoping review of its efficacy and applications

Abstract

Puppetry-based interventions have gained recognition as a potential tool in therapeutic, educational, and social contexts, offering unique benefits in emotional expression, anxiety reduction, and social skills development, thereby contributing to mental health promotion. This review aims to bridge the gap between practice and theory, providing a comprehensive understanding of the role of puppetry in therapeutic and educational settings for promoting mental health. A scoping review was conducted using the PICOS framework and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, examining studies across 16 databases up to August 2024. This review evaluated 30 studies to assess the effectiveness of puppetry-based interventions across diverse populations, including children, adolescents, and vulnerable groups such as refugees and the elderly. The findings demonstrate significant improvements in emotional regulation, anxiety management, and social interaction, particularly in pediatric and educational settings. However, the review also identifies critical gaps in the literature, including the limited use of large-scale randomized controlled trials, a scarcity of longitudinal studies, and inconsistent application of theoretical frameworks. These gaps highlight the need for more rigorous and theoretically grounded research to fully optimize the benefits of puppetry-based interventions. This review consolidates existing evidence and offers a roadmap for future research, emphasizing the importance of standardized protocols and long-term outcome evaluations. The findings contribute to the growing recognition of puppetry as a valuable tool in therapeutic and educational practices, offering insights into how these interventions can be effectively tailored to meet the needs of diverse populations.