Citation

Leclerc R, McCarty B. Int. J. Play 2022; 11(1): 58-76.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/21594937.2022.2042938

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Trauma-related psychiatric disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are highly prevalent in children in war zones; yet professional care is scarcely available. This leaves children and their families, often also affected by trauma, to live with unaddressed psychopathologies. This paper presents a framework for designing toys promoting resilience and support healing in children potentially traumatized by war. Structured around several workshops, it was introduced to undergraduate students within a toy design course in an east Asian University and facilitated by a transdisciplinary team consisting of the authors, a designer, and an artist, and expressive and play therapists working in war zones. Analysis of outcomes demonstrates that a short design workshop, albeit disconnected from the context of use, may appropriately redesign toys available in war zone markets as play therapy-inspired transitional or comfort objects supporting healing from war-related trauma. Feedback from therapists provided keys for further elaboration of the framework.

Language: en

Keywords

Children in war zones; humanitarian design; play therapy; post-traumatic stress disorder; toy design; transitional objects