Abstract
Pretend play involves generating ideas, treating objects symbolically, and making-up and acting out stories. Expression of emotion and affective themes is an important characteristic of pretend play. Children imagine many different possibilities for events, daily problems, narratives, and fantasies. Many components of creative thought occur in pretend play and set the stage for later creative production, either in daily life or in a chosen career. All of these components contribute to the development of the ability to visualize what is possible and to act on the possible in a creative fashion. Important features of play that contribute to imagining the possible are as follows: role-playing; building scenarios; imagining; expressing feelings and affect themes; acting out problems and possible outcomes; and taking joy in playing/creating. All of these features reflect aspects of cognitive flexibility. Pretend play is important because it helps develop these cognitive and affective representations and enables the child to “play” with them and manipulate them into various combinations. This process should help cognitive flexibility develop, which, in turn, enables visualization of many different possibilities in later life. Research in the area of play and creativity is reviewed. Pretend play is a natural, built-in, venue that is self-reinforcing and universal. Further study of the processes in pretend play and how to facilitate development through play is important for future researchers.
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Russ, S.W. (2021). Play. In: The Palgrave Encyclopedia of the Possible. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98390-5_124-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98390-5_124-1
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