Examining Students’ Self-Perceived Competence and Comfort in an Experiential Play Therapy Counseling Course: A Single Group Pretest-Posttest Investigation

The current study utilized a single-group pretest-posttest design to evaluate students’ self-perceived competence and comfort of using a variety of play therapy techniques and interventions with a range of client populations as a result of taking a one-week intensive course in Play Therapy. In an effort to conduct course evaluation and explore student’s self-perceived comfort and competence related to play therapy the researchers created the Play Therapy Comfort and Competency Survey based on the content of the course. The results indicated statistically significant scores between the preand posttest measures, as measured by participants’ self-perceived higher competence and comfort levels after taking the course. Results from this preliminary study are promising as students’ self-perceived competence and comfort using play therapy was greater as a result of taking the one-week intensive MHS 6421 Foundations of Play Therapy and Play Process course. Limitations of the study and implications for future research are discussed.