Investigation of cognitive-behavioral play therapy effectiveness on cognitive functions in aggressive children

AIMS: Several brain regions are known to be involved in aggressive behavioral including dysfunction in brain regions contributing to executive functions that lead to loss of some cognitive performance (CP). Play therapy (PT) as an effective treatment is used for a long time and it has a therapeutic effect on cognitive functions. Creativity, learning coping technique, social problem-solving ability, and self-controlling are some of main outcomes of this treatment. This study investigated the effect of cognitive-behavioral PT (CBPT) on working memory (WM), response inhibition (RI), and CP of aggressive children. METHODS: In a pre–post-design, 18 children with aggressive behavioral were randomized into two groups: experimental and control. Interventions were provided 12 sessions and progressed up to 1 h per session. Executive Function and Stop Signal Task of Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery tests were used in pre- and post-assessment. RESULTS: Findings demonstrated that the treatment improved in RI and CP of aggressive children in experimental group significantly (P < 0.05), but this change is not apparent in WM (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: CBPT could be an effective intervention for children with aggression to improve their CP. However, despite this effectiveness, choosing the appropriate exercises to engage more cognitive functions is an important factor for optimizing of this treatment.