Construction of a theoretical model representative of the experience: occupational therapists meaning play in Center of Psychosocial for Children and Adolescents

Abstract

The research aimed to build a theoretical model representative of the experience of occupational therapists working at Center of Psychosocial Care for Children and Adolescents that identifies the meanings given to playing in their professional practice. The qualitative approach study used Grounded Theory as a methodological framework. Eight occupational therapists from Center of Psychosocial Care for Children and Adolescents in the city of São Paulo participated in the research. The comparative analysis of the data made it possible to identify two phenomena that make up the experience: “Having an occupational therapy knowledge about playing” and “Identifying forces contrary to the support of play”. The articulation of these phenomena allowed us to identify the central category “The occupational therapist supporting the ludic in his clinical practice at Center of Psychosocial Care for Children and Adolescents”, from which a theoretical model is proposed. The results of the study were interpreted in light of the Winnicottian perspective in the construction of care in Occupational Therapy, which conceives of playing as a constitutive element of the experience of being a child. The theoretical model built shows that the occupational therapist has consistent theoretical knowledge and ethical-political training to produce strategies to support play in Center of Psychosocial Care for Children and Adolescents in the face of opposing hegemonic forces.