{"id":6301,"date":"2018-10-03T07:42:24","date_gmt":"2018-10-03T06:42:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/childandfamilyblog.com\/?p=6301"},"modified":"2026-02-25T12:45:37","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T12:45:37","slug":"play-deprivation-early-child-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/childandfamilyblog.com\/play-deprivation-early-child-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Play deprivation can damage early child development"},"content":{"rendered":"

Educators, parents and policy makers should all be concerned at the rapid decline in unsupervised free play for children<\/a>, which may damage early child development and later social and emotional learning, according to research.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sustained, moderate-to-severe play deprivation during the first 10 years of life appears to be linked to poor early child development, later leading to depression, difficulty adapting to change, poorer self-control, and a greater tendency to addiction as well as fragile and shallower interpersonal relationships. Play deprivation in childhood has come up in numerous interviews that I have conducted with some of America\u2019s most violent criminals. <\/span><\/p>\n

This emerging evidence is set against childhood environments where outdoor play has decreased by 71 per cent in one generation in the US and UK. Intergenerational play and \u2018family\u2019 games are also in decline. Poverty and fewer opportunities to play are endemic, particularly in inner cities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Joe Frost<\/a>, the leading American scholar of play, contends that the diminution, modification and\/or disappearance of play during the past 50 years is causing a public health crisis and a threat to societal welfare that may last generations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n

Table of Contents<\/p>\nToggle<\/span><\/path><\/svg><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n