Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

2-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Program

Psychology

Advisor

Roger Hart

Committee Members

Celina Su

Marta Gutman

Sheridan Bartlett

Aysenur Benevento

Subject Categories

Civic and Community Engagement | Early Childhood Education | Leisure Studies | Other Psychology

Keywords

adults’ role in play, children’s right to play, civil society, play advocacy, unstructured play, Turkey

Abstract

The Convention on the Rights of the Child has established children’s rights to non- discrimination, development, participation and the observance of their best interests. With this recognition, there has been a growing global interest in acknowledging play as a right. Yet unstructured play, in which children can choose when, where and how to play, with control over their play, has not received the same attention, support and investment as organized, structured play (UNCRC General Comment 17, 2013). The way adults perceive and support play shapes the play opportunities that are available to children (Bianquin, 2018; Göl-Güven, 2017). Additionally, institutions and structures built on these conceptions serve to reinforce or block children’s access to play opportunities (Lynch et al., 2018). The academic literature from Turkey points to jeopardized access to unstructured play in different everyday contexts. While existing research identifies the relevant social, economic, environmental causes, it falls short of presenting a comprehensive portrait regarding the links between the capacity and willingness within different levels of systems in society to provide unstructured play and varying perception(s) of childhood and conceptions of adult/child relationships. This research is based on the contention that identifying these links is crucial in understanding the barriers to unstructured play and that play provides a microcosm of the larger structures, systems, and relationships within the society in relation to genuinely understanding and supporting children.

Following theoretical frameworks that enable situating children’s play within larger socio- ecological and socio-cultural contexts (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Vygotsky, 1978), I investigate the current state of unstructured play in the Turkish context. The goal of this study is two-fold: 1) to identify and examine the barriers that exist in different levels of the Turkish society that stand against the realization of unstructured play 2) to articulate the perceptions and practices that contribute to imagining, designing, and sustaining unstructured play opportunities in this context. To achieve this goal, I draw on 21 narratively and phenomenologically inspired semi-structured interviews, which include 20 individual interviews and 1 group interview, involving a total of 24 play advocates who are professionals from fields such as education, urban planning, civil society, psychotherapy, some of whom are also parents. I analyze the interviews thematically in relation to the categories of who the advocates are and what do they do about play, barriers to play and what needs to change, their conceptions and aspirations related to play.

Analysis reveals that play advocacy was frequently at the interface of civil society engagement and intersectional commitments around social justice, even though each play advocate has a unique story encompassing their respective personal and professional trajectories. Advocates who hold a radical inspiration shed light on the larger political economic system, societal power structures and social hierarchies in their elaboration of the barriers to unstructured play, helping contextualize the labeling of children as fundamentally different and lesser than the adults from a macro-structural perspective. In contribution to play studies, I also find that not all play advocates are against instrumentalization of play, but they exhibit different levels and conceptions of instrumentalization of play (towards outcomes). Play advocates who instrumentalize play do that towards much broader goals than academic learning, skill acquisition or energy disposal, such as for creating a comfortable, safe space for expression and for getting an understanding of one’s inner world.

The exploration of barriers to play and what needs to change as perceived by play advocates reveals the psycho-social and macro-cultural contours of the neglect of and the resistance against children’s play needs. Themes that I identify from the analysis are: Physical and psychological detachment from the natural environment is a barrier, Configuration of adult-child relationships based on the anxieties of adults is a barrier, Perceptions of play remain a barrier, Design of the built environment is a barrier, Singular focus on academic success is a barrier, Absence of other children to play with is a barrier, Digital technology is a symptom of, not a cause of lack of access to unstructured play. I discuss these barriers in relation to their rootedness in the historical and social contexts of change in the Turkish society, establishing connections as to how perceptions and infrastructure of play are deeply intertwined with these contexts. They further illuminate the rootedness of the past improvement projects that are reviewed, in tokenistic and didactic way of approaching children and play.

Analyzing the interviews also helps in embarking on a phenomenological investigation that explores play advocates’ personal and professional trajectories, experiences, dreams, struggles which tie to their play advocacy. On conceptions and aspirations related to play, I identify three themes: On Adults’ Role in Play, On What Play Brings, On What Play Is. The most prominent conceptions and aspirations of play that were found as part of On Adults’ Role in Play were: Adults’ role is opening up space; Adults’ role is providing support required to overcome conflicts; Adults’ role is providing support required to overcome conflicts; Adults’ role is to interact rather than to instruct; Adults’ role is playing together/playing with rather than “making” children play; Adults’ role is being available for children. The category On What Play Brings revealed: Learning and development happen during play and Enjoyment and fun are the most important outcomes of play. Lastly, On What Play is revealed: Play is a way of connecting and paying attention to the unique child; Play is an immersive process of transformation; Play is about expression and reflection.

I build on Archer’s (2020) interpretation of Bhabha’s (1994) theory of the third space in the light of early childhood professional’s play advocacy, applying it to play advocates in my sample from diverse professions. I use this approach to explore the development of the play advocate identity. Advocates leave the mainstream institutional spaces that they operated in and focus on alternative spaces and resources that center on play with their work with children. As they, however, advocate for play within this newly formulated, dynamic identity and evolving spaces, they often struggle to secure the necessary support for continuity.

This study helps to crystallize and contextualize meanings around advocating for unstructured play. It situates play within broader structural developments and frames it as an integral part of human development and social justice, extending beyond educational frameworks. It shows that the support for unstructured play is inalienably linked to perceptions of children and a commitment to children’s rights. It also highlights that the discussion of access to unstructured play and the practice of play advocacy are political issues rather than technical processes and that they cannot be addressed and scaled up without a fundamental shift in how broad sections of society, including the educational system, conceive of play, as well as changes to local government approaches, legal frameworks, and national policy. Play advocates can lay the foundation for this shift by contributing to the integration of knowledge, experiences, and programs informed by children’s rights and well-being into public education, social services, and urban planning systems. Their ongoing advocacy can also help build and strengthen community advocates who will emerge from among parents, teachers, educators, and municipal agents across Turkey.

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