Against the rules – disrupting and reassessing discursive practices of playfulness

Abstract

The article dissects approaches to playfulness with persons with learning difficulties. It questions the intersection of dis/ability and play by reassessing (who determines) the role of play in people with dis/abilities’ lives with a focus on discursive practices of belittlement and diagnosing, as well as the positive potential in play, such as empowerment in an inclusive game session. As part of an international research project, we facilitated an open play session and gathered data by recording it and the reflective discussions that followed. The research methodology follows a Grounded Theory approach, using Situational Analysis to map the empirical material. Initiating play and negotiating rules proved relevant throughout initial mapping. Additionally, the question of whether and how discursive practices of belittlement and diagnosing were reproduced, disrupted, and reassessed took centre stage. The findings show that both discursive practices of belittlement and positive potentials of play surfaced throughout the open play session.