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Play, as a universal phenomenon, has been the subject of studies utilizing a variety of theoretical frames of reference. Like dreams, play functions as a window through which the investigator or therapist can take a glimpse at the workings of the mind. Also like dreams, play not only provides a window through which we can investigate the mind but “it is a major growth center of the psyche” (C. Stewart, 1981, p. 92). But, unlike a dream, in the case of play, the therapist can also respond, interact with the player, and thereby effect its outcome. It is for this latter reason that play therapy in its various forms—psychoanalytic, relationship, behavioral—has become a form of treatment for children.
The interest in play came with the interest in learning more about the inner world of the child. Psychoanalysis, as this was applied to the treatment of children, played an important part in these investigations as did academic psychology, especially following Piaget's pioneering research into cognitive development. By investigating the intricate interplay of the child's sensorimotor and cognitive-perceptual endowment with his physical surround, Piaget—observing the play of his own children—arrived at far-reaching conclusions regarding the mode by which the child constructs his reality. Jung, Freud, and Piaget gave us the theoretical tools to observe, to organize, and to interpret the child's play, in terms of both its emotional and its cognitive dimensions.