Play Behavior and Occupational Therapy

The effectiveness of treatment methods on a person's ability to carry out occupational roles competently is of interest to occupational therapists. This case study demonstrated how play, as an occupational role of childhood and as a measure of competence, can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of occupational therapy that uses a sensory integrative approach. The positive changes in C.C.'s play behavior support the basic philosophy of sensory integration, which states that an increase in sensory integrative functions will improve competence (in this study, competence is defined as play), that is, that a person will have the ability to carry out occupational roles in an adaptive and competent manner. In addition, improvements in other areas, such as the organization and execution of self-care skills and improvements in gross and fine motor skills, provide further support to sensory integrative philosophy. Further exploration of these concepts would add to a growing body of knowledge aimed at the documentation of the effectiveness and efficacy of occupational therapy interventions.