| Course | PAC 405 Child Psychology |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 6 |
| Paper type | Therapy approach application |
| Length | About 1,054 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Psychology and Addiction Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for PAC 405 Module 6
Letting Him Lead: Child-Centered Therapy Principles Adapted for a Twelve-Year-Old Who Does Not Want to Talk
Student Name
Psychology and Addiction Studies Program, Aspen University
PAC 405: Child Psychology
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Letting Him Lead: Child-Centered Therapy Principles Adapted for a Twelve-Year-Old Who Does Not Want to Talk
Jaylen, the twelve-year-old at Bayview Children's Counseling, the fictional agency in these papers, answers most direct questions with a shrug or "I don't know." But when he is drawing his comic hero, Bolt, he talks freely about school, basketball and his cousins. Module 5 considered a psychodynamic reading of his drawings. This paper considers a child-centered approach, which would follow Jaylen's lead rather than interpret his drawings, and asks whether it fits a twelve-year-old who has started drinking. Jaylen's family, like Jaylen, is fictional; the meta-analyses and Axline's principles are not.
Axline's Principles
Axline (1947) adapted Carl Rogers's client-centered therapy for children and set out eight principles for play therapy. The therapist develops a warm, friendly relationship with the child. The therapist accepts the child exactly as he is. The therapist creates a feeling of permissiveness, so the child feels free to express feelings. The therapist recognizes the feelings the child expresses and reflects them back so the child gains insight. The therapist respects the child's ability to solve his own problems and to make choices. The therapist does not direct the child's actions or conversation; the child leads. The therapist does not hurry the therapy, recognizing that it is gradual. And the therapist sets only those limits necessary to anchor the therapy in reality and make the child aware of his responsibility in the relationship. In child-centered therapy, these conditions themselves are believed to promote growth.
The Evidence
Bratton et al. (2005) pooled controlled studies of play therapy. Play therapy produced a large overall effect compared with control conditions. Humanistic approaches, including child-centered play therapy, produced larger effects than nonhumanistic ones. Effects were largest when parents were trained to conduct play sessions with their own children, an approach called filial therapy. Lin and Bratton (2015) later conducted a meta-analysis focused specifically on child-centered play therapy, finding a moderate positive effect across outcomes, including behavior problems and emotional problems, with larger effects when caregivers were involved. In both reviews, most studies involved children younger than Jaylen, typically between about three and ten years old.
Adapting the Principles for a Twelve-Year-Old
| Axline's principle | Adaptation for Jaylen |
|---|---|
| Warm, friendly relationship | Start with his interests: basketball, comics, his favorite games |
| Accept the child as he is | Accept his reluctance to talk without pushing him to explain himself |
| Permissiveness for feelings | Let anger and silence be acceptable in the room |
| Recognize and reflect feelings | Reflect the feelings in Bolt's story and in what he says while drawing |
| The child leads | Let him choose the activity: drawing, a card game or shooting a foam basketball |
| Limits only as needed | Clear limits on safety and on the session's end time |
A Sample Exchange
| Speaker | Words | Principle |
|---|---|---|
| Jaylen | (drawing) "Bolt's mad because his dad didn't show up to the city festival again." | Child leads the topic |
| Counselor | "Bolt's really angry that his dad missed it again." | Reflects feeling, does not interpret |
| Jaylen | "He's not even mad. He doesn't care." | Defends against the feeling |
| Counselor | "Bolt's telling himself it doesn't matter." | Accepts and reflects, without arguing |
| Jaylen | (pause) "It kind of matters. He was supposed to be there." | Child moves toward the feeling himself |
Limits the Approach Sets
Child-centered therapy is sometimes misunderstood as having no limits, but Axline's final principle keeps limits that anchor the therapy. For Jaylen, these would be few and clear: no hurting himself or the counselor, no damaging the room and the session ends on time. If he arrives having used, the counselor would name it calmly and decide whether the session can continue safely. Limits stated without anger, and kept consistently, give a child whose world has been unpredictable a small experience of an adult who is both accepting and firm.
Where the Approach Fits
Child-centered methods fit some of Jaylen's needs well. They build a relationship with a reluctant preadolescent who distrusts adults who nag, they give him a place where anger and grief are accepted and they respect his growing need for autonomy. The evidence that caregiver involvement strengthens effects suggests that his mother could learn some of these skills, such as reflecting his feelings when he is angry, which might ease their conflicts.
But the approach has limits for his drinking. Child-centered therapy trusts the child to lead, and Jaylen, left to lead, does not raise his drinking or see it as a problem. His substance use occurs in settings outside the therapy room, with cousins and peers, and requires the structure, limits and adult supervision that later modules address. The evidence base for child-centered therapy also does not include many children of his age with substance use.
Why Following Matters at Twelve
Preadolescents are beginning to separate from adults and are sensitive to being told what to do. For Jaylen, whose experience of adults includes a father who left and a mother who was unreliable during her use, an adult who follows rather than directs may be a new experience. Rogers and Axline both held that a relationship of acceptance allows a child to approach difficult feelings at his own pace, and the sample exchange shows that happening: Jaylen moves from "he doesn't care" to "it kind of matters" without being pushed. That movement is small, but it is his own, and a child who feels respected in the room may be more willing to try the harder work the plan asks of him elsewhere.
Combining Approaches
A multidimensional plan can use child-centered methods to open each session and build the relationship, and as the stance for exploring his feelings about his father, while setting aside time for more structured work on his drinking and including his mother and grandmother in family sessions. The child-centered relationship may make him more willing to engage in that structured work.
Conclusion
Jaylen talks most when he leads. Axline's principles describe a relationship of acceptance and respect in which children can grow, Bratton and colleagues and Lin and Bratton show that play therapy, especially child-centered and with parent involvement, is effective and adaptations using drawing and games make the approach suitable for a twelve-year-old. Child-centered work fits his need for a trusted relationship and space for his feelings, while family and behavioral work, still to come, take on the drinking.
References
Axline, V. M. (1947). Play therapy: The inner dynamics of childhood. Houghton Mifflin.
Bratton, S. C., Ray, D., Rhine, T., & Jones, L. (2005). The efficacy of play therapy with children: A meta-analytic review of treatment outcomes. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 36(4), 376-390. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7028.36.4.376
Lin, Y.-W., & Bratton, S. C. (2015). A meta-analytic review of child-centered play therapy approaches. Journal of Counseling & Development, 93(1), 45-58. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6676.2015.00180.x
Reading the PAC 405 Module 6 assignment instructions
Child-centered therapy is the sixth module of PAC 405; the paper usually lays out its principles, tests them against outcome research and shows, in an exchange, what a session would sound like. Work from the Module 6 wording Aspen provides; Jaylen is a teaching composite. State the core principles accurately. Present outcome evidence with its limits, including the ages studied. Adapt the approach to the child's age and interests. Show the approach in a sample exchange. Judge its fit for the child's specific problems. Include parents where evidence supports it, with an APA 7 reference for each study. Note the ages of the children in the studies you rely on. Show at least one moment where the child moves toward a feeling on his own.
How the PAC 405 Module 6 example is put together
Jaylen sits silently when asked questions but talks while drawing his comic hero, Bolt. Axline's book Play Therapy supplies the eight principles. Bratton and colleagues' Professional Psychology: Research and Practice meta-analysis reports play therapy's effects, including larger effects with parent involvement. Lin and Bratton's Journal of Counseling and Development meta-analysis focuses on child-centered play therapy. A six-row table adapts the principles for a preadolescent, using drawing and games instead of toys. A sample exchange shows reflection and following his lead as he moves, through Bolt, toward his own feeling. The judgment is that child-centered methods build the relationship and support his feelings, and could be taught to his mother, but his drinking needs a more directive approach.
Where the marks sit in the PAC 405 Module 6 rubric
Approach papers earn credit for accurate principles, honest evidence and realistic adaptation. This example states Axline's principles faithfully and then adapts them for a twelve-year-old, acknowledging that most play therapy research involves younger children. The meta-analytic findings are reported with their moderators, such as parent involvement. The sample exchange shows reflection and following the child's lead in practice. The judgment of fit is balanced: child-centered methods suit the relationship and his emotional needs, while his substance use needs structure. The paper models the course's view that approaches can be combined, and that the child's age shapes how any approach is delivered. The limits of the evidence for older children are named.
PAC 405 Module 6 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students often describe child-centered therapy as simply being nice or letting children play. Explain its principles and why they are therapeutic. Report evidence with its limits, such as the age of children studied. Adapt for older children, using art, games or activity rather than toys. Show the approach in an exchange, with reflections that follow the child's lead. Judge fit honestly; child-centered methods may not be enough for problems such as substance use that need structure and limits. Involve parents, since research shows larger effects. Explain to parents why the sessions may look like play, so they do not mistake them for wasted time. Teach parents one reflective skill to use at home.
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PAC 405 Module 6 questions, answered
What does PAC 405 Module 6 usually ask for?
Aspen's PAC 405 covers child-centered therapy in this module, so explaining its principles and evidence and applying it to a child is typical. Check the Module 6 prompt.
What are Axline's principles of play therapy?
Eight principles, including a warm relationship, accepting the child as he is, recognizing and reflecting feelings, trusting the child and letting the child lead.
Does play therapy work?
Bratton and colleagues' meta-analysis found play therapy effective, with larger effects for humanistic approaches and when parents were involved.
Where can I find a free PAC 405 Module 6 sample paper?
Find the full paper on this page: child-centered therapy adapted for a twelve-year-old, with a principles table and a sample exchange.
Is play therapy suitable for preteens?
It can be adapted using art, games and activities, though Lin and Bratton's review and most studies involved younger children.