94: Research Review - The Environmental Taxonomy of Outdoor Play Space Features
We're diving back into research after a long break! In this episode, we explore the article titled Theory of Affordances to Understand Environment Play Transactions: Environmental Taxonomy of Outdoor Play Space Features- A Scoping Review by Morgenthaler, Lynch, Loebach, Pentland, and Schultz, published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy in 2024.
This article examines how various outdoor environmental characteristics influence children's outdoor play. The authors developed a taxonomy (a HUGE chart!) that allows practitioners to evaluate the "affordances" of outdoor play spaces...in other words: what do different types of features of the outdoor environment invite children to DO in that environment?
The Environmental Taxonomy of Outdoor Play Space Features categorizes physical environments, their functional qualities, and the play activities they support. This helps us as occupational, physical, and speech therapists, social workers or mental health professionals, to:
🌳 Consider ways we may change the environment to support different types of play in sessions
👀 Discover types of play that may be absent or happening infrequently in our sessions and consider ways to increase the variety of play experiences for children we see in therapy.
✅ Evaluate outdoor play spaces when providing consultation for schools and local governments
Find episode 94 of Therapy in the Great Outdoors wherever you get your podcast fix! And tell me: do you think you'll use this taxonomy in your work?
00:00 Introduction to Nature-Based Pediatric Therapy
01:00 Research Review Episode Introduction
02:37 Understanding the Theory of Affordances
03:49 Developing the Environmental Taxonomy
09:02 Applications and Implications for Therapy
22:36 Practical Takeaways and Conclusion
28:34 Final Thoughts and Call to Action
Welcome to the TGO Podcast!
The Therapy in the Great Outdoors podcast is about the business & practice of nature-based pediatric therapy of all kinds. If you are an outdoor-loving practitioner in the field of occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech-language pathology, social work, behavioral health, mental health counseling, or outdoor education THIS is for you! You'll learn how you can take your work with children outdoors into nature. We'll cover exactly what it takes to run a successful and profitable nature-based practice that changes children's lives (and yours!) forever.
