Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy

1° INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

Saturday June 8 - Sunday June 9, 2024
from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm UTC time

Conference chairmen

Susan M. Knell e Maria A. Geraci  
 

Scientific committee

Ornella Argento

Carlo Baldari

Marco Cavallo

Meena Dasari

Didem Altay

The theme of this first International Conference is Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy: a psychotherapeutic approach focused on preschool and school-age children and their parents. It is important to address emerging psychological distress in young children through psychotherapy. This approach aims to engage children with various problems directly in therapy by integrating cognitive and behavioral interventions into the play therapy paradigm.
Cognitive-behavioral play therapy, known internationally as Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy (CBPT), proposes a conceptual framework that integrates the principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy with the therapeutic power of play, making them sensitive and appropriate to the child's developmental level. 
By designing specific play therapy interventions for preschool and school children, CBT therapy also becomes accessible for the 3-8 age group, facilitating the child's direct involvement in therapy and stimulating his or her active role in the process of change.
Through a structured intervention, the psychotherapist recreates situations from the child's life and uses modeling, role-playing, desensitization, and other empirically supported CBT techniques to help the child modify dysfunctional modes of thinking and change his or her behavior.
Implementing play therapy to developmental cognitive-behavioral therapy helps children benefit from psychotherapy that might otherwise be inaccessible to them.
Play therapy research to date has largely supported the effectiveness of play therapy in a wide range of social, emotional, behavioral, and learning problems.

This conference aims to expand and update current knowledge on this psychotherapeutic approach in light of the ever-increasing needs of children with psychological problems. In addition, broadening the CBPT research base is important to the clinical and scientific community.

The Scientific Committee will open a "Call for Papers" that will encourage submissions targeting the themes of the congress.

PROGRAM

SATURDAY, JUNE 8

MORNING

9.00 – 10.00 | INSTITUTIONAL GREETINGS

eCampus University Rector Emeritus Prof. Enzo Siviero,
UNICEF delegate Valentina Zerini

OPENING WORKS
President's presentation M.A. Geraci, S. Knell

Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy (Chairman: Maria A. Geraci)  

10.00 - 11.00 | Susan Knell: Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy “The History of Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy 

11.00 – 11.30 | Coffee break

11.30 –12.00 | Meena Dasari: Clinical Application of Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy for Social Anxiety 

12.00 – 12.30 | Francesca Romana D'Angelo: The Puppet Sentence Completion Task  

12.30 – 13.00 | Adriana Lis, Claudia Mazzeschi, Daniela Di Riso, Elisa Del Vecchio: The use of Sandra Russ' Affective Play Scale in Italy: history, developments and research and clinical applications

13.00 - 13.30 | Jaqueline B. Toner: The use of Workbooks in Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy

Lunch break - Poster Session  
13.30 - 14.30 | Box meals prepared by IPSIASAR Pellegrino Artusi

AFTERNOON

Cognitive behavioral play interventions in school, rehabilitation and hospital settings (Chairman: Ornella Argento)  

14.30 – 15.00 | Maria A. Geraci: Effects of a cognitive behavioral play intervention in school settings

15.00 – 15.30 | Martina Paola Zanaboni: The effects of a cognitive behavioral play intervention on the quality of life of children with epilepsy syndromes with onset in childhood

15.30 - 16.00 | Karla Fehr: Application of a cognitive behavioral play intervention to pediatric populations

15.00 – 16.30 | Coffee break

16.30 - 17.00 | Sandra Russ: Pretend Play Research Findings: Implications for Clinical Practice 

17.00 – 17.30 | Eva Feindler: Playful approaches to CBT with aggressive children: using the Turtle Magic program

17.30 - 18.00 | Andrea Meana de la Vega: Cognitive-Behavioural Play Training: the use of play in cognitive rehabilitation

18.00 - 18.30 | Sandra Pimentel: Creative CBPT with school-age children

SUNDAY, JUNE 9

MORNING

Theoretical approaches to Play Therapy: comparisons and contrasts (Chairman: Maria A. Geraci)  

9.00 – 9.30 | Didem Altay: Child Centered Play Therapy

9.30 – 10.00 | Giandomenico Bagatin: Gestalt Play Therapy  

10.00 – 10.30 | Coffee break 

10.30 – 11.00 | Gianluca Biggio: The use of play in a psychodynamic perspective 

11.00 – 11.30 | Francesco Montecchi: Sandplay Therapy  

11.30 - 12.00 | Maria A. Geraci: Differences and similarities between different approaches to play therapy

12.00 - 13.00 | Didem Altay: Integrated Play Therapy: utilizing CCPT, CBPT and EMDR approaches in working with children

Lunch break - Poster Session  
13.00 - 14.00 | Box meals prepared by IPSIASAR Pellegrino Artusi


AFTERNOON

Cognitive Behavioral therapy in childhood (Chairman: Marco Cavallo)  

14.00 – 15.00 | Roberta Bacchio, Roberta Rubbino, Rosetta Cappelluccio: Symposium - Play and cognitive behavioural therapy: general characteristics, need satisfaction, emotional regulation and trauma processing

15.00 – 15.30 | Martina Manzoni: EMDR in childhood

15.30 – 16.00 | Coffee break 

16.00 – 16.30 | Liana Lowenstein: Creative Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy Techniques for Children with Anxiety

16.30 - 17.00 | Elizabeth J. Short:The Relationship between Play and Executive Functioning Skills in Neurodivergent and Neurotypical Preschoolers  

17.00 - 17.30 | Robert D. Friedberg: Integrating improvisational theatre exercises into CBT with youth

17.30 | Closure of works