Violence exposure, play characteristics, and behavior in a sample of six-year-old children.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Violence exposure is a prevalent problem, especially in low-income, urban communities. Children are at risk for exposure and the negative psychological and behavioral sequalae. Several studies have shown that victims of violent acts display more externalizing behavior problems whereas witnesses to violence display more internalizing behavior problems. In young children, play reflects a child's emotional state and behavioral strategies. In the present study, play characteristics, defined by aggressive affective themes, organization, and imagination were examined in the fantasy play of children exposed to violence. The purposes of the present study were to: (1) examine aggressive affective themes, organization, and imagination of children exposed to violence utilizing a formalized measure of play; and (2) to examine the relationship between behavior observed during a standardized play assessment and child behavior as rated by parents and teachers; and (3) explore the relative strength of aggressive affective themes, organization, and imagination in play in predicting behavior problems. Contrary to initial hypotheses, there were few significant group differences on several of the constructs of play, including aggressive affect, organization and imagination. Significant findings included that the interaction of violence exposure type and severity of exposure predicted mean differences in organization of play. Higher frequencies of aggressive affect and total negative affect were significantly positively correlated with externalizing behavior problems, as reported by teachers. As in many previous studies, boys demonstrated significantly more aggressive affect than girls during the play task. Finally, neither gender, aggressive affect, quality of play organization, or their interactions accounted for significant, independent variance for any behavioral problems reported by caregivers or teachers. The study had several limitations, with the most salient being lack of sample variance. Future studies should address that as well as measure limitations. In a clinical context, the use of play to assess a child's ability to express and modulate different affective states in an imaginative, organized story in order to bolster coping and adjustment, emotional understanding, and interpersonal functioning can offer mechanisms to reduce symptoms and increase psychological wellness.