Dibs: In Search of Self - Essay Example

When attending nursery school, Dibs becomes withdrawn and does not respond to any of his teachers' attempts to make him active and engaged in class activities like his peers. This made his parents and teachers give up and consider Dibs a mentally retarded child. Axline brings her help as the last resort that could help Dibs out of his situation. Her knowledge and style in handling Dibs work successfully because she applies a series of play therapy sessions that runs for several months, which helps to cure him.

Unexpected by many, Dibs turns out to have an IQ rate of 168. Through her therapy, Axline takes an emotionally unbiased approach to her patient. She does this irrespective of the fact that Dibs needs emotional support. She did this ensuring that she does not interfere with his personal endeavor to discover the self that had been severely reticent at home.1 Axline explains various counseling skills in her book. However, she does not specify what the counseling skills are. Instead, she explains the activities that occur so that anyone who is familiar with basic counseling skills can recognize them as Axline engages in dialogues with Dibs.

The book has been specifically produced for the attention of students, therapists and researchers. However, it would also be relevant to anyone who is interested in the field. Axline’s writing style is formal and the chapters are well organized. She has arranged the book in the sense that one chapter addresses a single play therapy session or event. She illustrates the activities that Dibs engages in and makes the book interesting to read. She also shows that she equally engaged with Dibs and the matter being solved.

2 This book is essential to the reader because after reading the book, the reader appreciates its relevance in addressing emotional disturbance. Axline gives many examples of how counseling skills can be used to help a disturbed person. Secondly, Axline explains the reason why she does not interrupt Dibs, which helps the reader gain imminence into her thought processes. The book achieved its aim as it introduced play therapy and can be used by both professionals and non-professionals. The book offers an insightful introduction to the concept of play therapy that is enormously pleasant to read.

It gives a professional therapist an insightful knowledge into mind that is greatly useful. The theme of the book, play therapy to a child in isolation and self-discovery, has been brought up clearly. In addition, the book emphasizes that through an understanding of the self, people can gain worthy life experience and grow into whole human beings.3 Axline supports through the explanation of concepts about play therapy throughout the book. For example, she describes the playroom in a detailed manner.

She also describes the activities that Dibs likes and is fond of through Dibs himself. This helps the reader to identify with the context and the activities present in the book where the reader grasps the scene and Dibs’ thought processes throughout the book. The manner in which the author describes the activities in the book draws the reader’s attention to detail. The author describes the events in the book in a chronological arrangement that allows the reader to witness Dibs’ development along with Axline.

Axline requests for the permission of Dibs parents before she records any information about