The Impact of School‐Based Group Adlerian Play Therapy on Internalizing Behaviors

ABSTRACT This study examined the impact of group Adlerian play therapy (GAdPT) compared to a waitlist control group (WG) with 94 fourth‐ and fifth‐grade students reporting clinical levels of internalizing behaviors. Forty‐eight students were assigned to GAdPT and 46 were assigned to the WG. Students in the treatment group received two 30‐min play therapy sessions weekly for 6 weeks, whereas students in the WG received no intervention. Following post administration of instruments, students in the WG received GAdPT. Results from two‐by‐two split‐plot ANOVAs indicated the GAdPT treatment group demonstrated statistically significant improvements on internalizing behaviors at home and in the classroom, reported by parents and teachers, compared to the WG. GAdPT demonstrated a large effect size for teacher/parent‐reported outcomes over time, indicating the clinical significance of the intervention. Additionally, 73% of parents and 91% of teachers reported improvements in internalizing behaviors, also revealing clinical significance. Implications for counseling practice are included.