The Emergence of Role Playing as a Form of Psychotherapy

DAVID A. KIPPER

Authors

DAVID A. KIPPER Author

Keywords:

Psychotherapy

Abstract

HUMAN BEINGS ARE BORN ACTORS. Their ability to act is not only part and parcel of the process of living but also a manifestation of the effort to master the world that surrounds them. All intelligent creatures display their feelings and skills by acting them out. Human beings, however, can plan such behavior in advance and produce it voluntarily. It is precisely this portrayal of concrete behaviors that is subsumed under the concept of role playing. Role playing, therefore, refers to behavior expressed as the result of a conscious
decision on the part of the player or at the request of others. To the objective observer this volitional characteristic of role playing behavior endows it with both a dramatic flavor and a sense of artificiality. To the involved participant, on the other hand, it constitute a genuine mode of expression.

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The Emergence of Role Playing as a Form of Psychotherapy

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