External Conflicts

Commonly viewed as the greatest attribute to play, the concept of social interaction can bring about negative consequences. It is important to provide for a child's ability to interact with others. The best way to teach interaction is through practice. With the highest hopes in mind, children are sent onto playgrounds, out into day cares, and into the outside world with the intention of learning the basics of social behavior. But the unfortunate truth is that what we hope to happen does not always correspond to reality. In the more upsetting of situations, a child may not fall into the "appropriate" category of social approval. The child may differ in terms of physical ability, physical appearance, socioeconomic class, race, culture and upbringing. All of the factors shed light onto the theory of play and its possible downfalls. The theory of play, as prior stated, is in reference to the postive trend it tends to follow but sometimes goes astray. Sometimes the social norm of social behavior is not so easily managed. Sometimes it is hard for kids to assimilate into the world of social interaction and are further outcasted by their inability to do what seems to come naturally to others. In other words, the major limitation to play is that it is a learned behavior that is largely dependent upon external actors. Simply playing is not enough, but it is the act of playing with others that provides the value in the play. Independent play is good for personal reflecction and exploration, but the social advantage to playing in a group must be utilized.