The Effectiveness of Play Therapy Training on Improving Social Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Kianpor, Hadis; Hashmipor, Sara

doi:10.22034/jmp.2025.503022.1129

The Effectiveness of Play Therapy Training on Improving Social Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

Hadis Kianpor ¹

Sara Hashmipor ²

¹ M.A. Student in General Psychology, Department of Psychology, Bandar Abbas Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandar Abbas, Iran

² Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Bandar Abbas Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandar Abbas, Iran

10.22034/jmp.2025.503022.1129

Abstract

Objective: Autism spectrum disorder is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by communication problems, limited social interactions, and repetitive behaviors. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of play therapy education with a parent-child approach in improving social skills in children with autism spectrum disorder.
Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design, a control group, and a follow-up phase. The statistical population of the study included children with autism at the Justice Center in Isfahan. The sample of the present study included 30 children with autism, including 30 children with autism, who were selected using purposive sampling and were divided into two experimental and control groups. The research instrument used was the Autism Social Skills Profile (ASSP), and play therapy education sessions with a parent-child approach were implemented in ten 90-minute sessions once a week on the experimental group. The research data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc test and SPSS version 24 software.
Results: The research findings showed that the difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of the mean scores of social skills variables in all stages of the experiment was significant (P<0.001).
Conclusion: The results of this study show that play therapy education with a parent-child approach can help improve children's social skills. Therefore, its use is recommended to strengthen social skills in children with autism spectrum disorder.
Objective: Autism spectrum disorder is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by communication problems, limited social interactions, and repetitive behaviors. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of play therapy education with a parent-child approach in improving social skills in children with autism spectrum disorder.
Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design, a control group, and a follow-up phase. The statistical population of the study included children with autism at the Justice Center in Isfahan. The sample of the present study included 30 children with autism, including 30 children with autism, who were selected using purposive sampling and were divided into two experimental and control groups. The research instrument used was the Autism Social Skills Profile (ASSP), and play therapy education sessions with a parent-child approach were implemented in ten 90-minute sessions once a week on the experimental group. The research data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc test and SPSS version 24 software.
Results: The research findings showed that the difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of the mean scores of social skills variables in all stages of the experiment was significant (P<0.001).
Conclusion: The results of this study show that play therapy education with a parent-child approach can help improve children's social skills. Therefore, its use is recommended to strengthen social skills in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Keywords

Children with Autism

Improving Social Skills

Play Therapy

Subjects

Abnormal Psychology

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