Mounting evidence reveals a rise in childhood mental health issues as children’s play declines. A 2011 article in the American Journal of Play argues for a causal link between the systematic decline in play and the corresponding rise in childhood anxiety, depression, feelings of helplessness, narcissism, and other mental illness indicators. Other researchers have found similar disturbing trends regarding play deprivation. In her book, Balanced and Barefoot, pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom describes the importance of free play and its healthy impact on emotional and physical development. She describes the trends away from free, active play and what she observes as a steady rise in sensory and motor development delays. “The cold hard truth,” says Hanscom, “is that when you compare today’s children to past generations, they just can’t keep up. Children are getting weaker, less resilient, and less imaginative.”
The more time children spend in structured, adult-led activities the less time they learn through free play. This can have a significant impact on their overall physical, cognitive, and emotional development. Researchers at the University of Colorado, Boulder published a 2014 report showing that young children who spent more time in structured activities, such as music lessons, organized sports, and homework, had worse “self-directed executive functioning” skills than children who spent time in less structured activities, such as free play, pleasure reading, and going to a library or museum. These executive functioning skills were defined as the ability to set and accomplish personal goals. Children whose time was most tightly controlled by adults fared worse on executive functioning measures. According to the researchers, childhood executive functioning skills are also an important indicator of long-term outcomes, including health, academic achievement, and financial success. As children spend more time in coordinated activities, their ability to self-direct weakens.
- Kerry McDonald, Unschooled
