To what extent can a series of play therapy sessions contribute to strengthening resilience in Syrian refugee children?
Sarah Elliott
Psychology
The war in Syria has been widely reported, with many well-known aid agencies raising awareness of the impact that the war is having on children. This research was hosted by the Middle East Children’s Institute (MECI) who are based in Amman, Jordan. The cohort comprised of twenty-one Syrian refugee children between the ages of six and twelve who participated in ten group play therapy sessions. The research study I undertook, used a mixed method design where comprehensive data was used to investigate what impact play therapy had on the children’s resilience. The short-term play therapy intervention indicated a 15% decrease of emotional and behavioural difficulties using the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a 33% reduction of post-traumatic stress symptoms using the Children’s Impact of Events Scale (CRIES), a resilience increase of 15% using the child scored Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM) and a 17% increase in the parent scored CYRM. The results of this study support the use of play therapy with Syrian refugee children, provide a comprehensive understanding of how resilience was strengthened and how this was observed by the parents, the children, the translator and the play therapist.