Developing Children's Creativity and Social-Emotional Competencies through Play: Summary of Twenty Years of Findings of the Evidence-Based Interventions "Game Program".

This work presents the results of four cooperative-creative game programs (Game Programs). In all four studies, experimental designs with repeated pretest-posttest measures and control groups were used. Validation samples ranged from 86 to 178 participants, randomly assigning participants to the experimental and control conditions. Before and after each program, a battery of assessment instruments was applied to measure the variables under study. The intervention consists of conducting a weekly game session during the school year. The results of the posttest covariance analyses confirmed a significant impact: (1) in social development, by increasing various positive social behaviors and decreasing many negative social behaviors; by increasing assertive cognitive strategies and prosocial resolution of interpersonal problems; and by enhancing relationships and positive communication among group members; (2) in emotional development, by improving self-concept, peer image, and emotional stability; and (3) in cognitive development, by increasing verbal intelligence, verbal and graphic-figurative creativity, as well as creative personality behaviors and traits. This work provides empirical evidence of the relevance of cooperative-creative play in child development.

Effects of a play program on creative thinking of preschool children.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a play program in the creative thinking of preschool children. The study used a repeated measures experimental pretest-posttest design with control groups. The sample included 86 participants aged 5 to 6 years (53 experimental and 33 control participants). Before and after administering the program, two evaluation instruments were applied: The Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (Torrance, 1990) and Behaviors and Traits of Creative Personality Scale (Garaigordobil & Berrueco, 2007). The program consisted of a weekly 75-minute play session throughout the school year. ANOVA results showed that the program significantly increased the verbal creativity (fluency, flexibility, originality), graphic creativity (elaboration, fluency, originality), and behaviors and traits of creative personality. In the pretest phase, there were no differences in the creativity of boys and girls, and the program stimulated a similar level of change in both sexes. The discussion focuses on the importance of implementing creative programs with preschool children.

Effects of a play program on creative thinking of preschool children

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a play program in the creative thinking of preschool children. The study used a repeated measures experimental pretest-posttest design with control groups. The sample included 86 participants aged 5 to 6 years (53 experimental and 33 control participants). Before and after administering the program, two evaluation instruments were applied: The Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (Torrance, 1990) and Behaviors and Traits of Creative Personality Scale (Garaigordobil & Berrueco, 2007). The program consisted of a weekly 75-minute play session throughout the school year. ANOVA results showed that the program significantly increased the verbal creativity (fluency, flexibility, originality), graphic creativity (elaboration, fluency, originality), and behaviors and traits of creative personality. In the pretest phase, there were no differences in the creativity of boys and girls, and the program stimulated a similar level of change in both sexes. The discussion focuses on the importance of implementing creative programs with preschool children (AU)

El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar los efectos de un programa de juego en la creatividad infantil. Se utilizó un diseño experimental de medidas repetidas pretest-postest con grupos de control. La muestra se configuró con 86 participantes de 5 a 6 años (53 experimentales y 33 control). Antes y después de la intervención se aplicaron 2 instrumentos de evaluación: El Test de Pensamiento Creativo de Torrance (Torrance, 1990) y La Escala de Conductas y Rasgos de Personalidad Creadora (Garaigordobil & Berrueco, 2007). El programa consistió en una sesión de juego semanal de 75 minutos de duración durante un curso escolar. Los resultados del ANOVA mostraron que el programa incrementó significativamente la creatividad verbal (fluidez, flexibilidad, originalidad), la creatividad gráfica (elaboración, fluidez, originalidad), así como las conductas y rasgos de personalidad creadora. En la fase pretest no había diferencias en la creatividad de niños y niñas, y el programa estimuló un nivel de cambio similar en ambos sexos. La discusión se centra en la importancia de implementar programas de creatividad con niños de edad preescolar (AU)