期刊名称：Journal of Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health
电子版ISSN：0973-1342
出版年度：2014
卷号：10
期号：2
页码：132-144
出版社：Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health
摘要：The paper discusses the case of an 11-year old sexually abused orphaned girl found on the street who had recently been adopted by a care home in Delhi. She had been withdrawn and unresponsive most of the times, occasionally abusive and aggressive, and completely dependent on others for her basic physical needs. The aim of the study was to explore with this child the use of Play Therapy. Assessment was done using semi- structured interviews with the care home director and the house-mother, and the Children's Apperception Test (CAT) to assess the dynamic workings of the child's problems. A client-centred non-directive orientation was adopted and entailed the therapist reflecting back to the child her verbalisations and actions. However, as the sessions progressed, the therapeutic process was increasingly imbued with elements from the psychoanalytic perspective. The paper discusses the reasons for the shift in orientation along with how it contributed to unravelling significant understandings of the child. The paper also discusses the major themes that emerged during play— inadequacy, denial, silence and fear—and how each of them was recognised and dealt with. The paper highlights the novice therapist's realisation of her own shortcomings along with her journey toward growth. It discusses the therapeutic process of being guided by the child, rather than fitting the other's reality into one's own conceptual frame. The paper also sheds light on the importance of transferring understandings of the process of Play Therapy to the Indian setting.
