Pretend play and parents’ view of social competence: The construct validity of the Child‐Initiated Pretend Play Assessment

Abstract

Background and Aims: Play is the primary means through which children develop skills and socially interact with other children. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between pretend play and social competence in 4–5‐year‐old typically developing children, thereby adding further knowledge to the construct validity of the Child‐Initiated Pretend Play Assessment (ChIPPA). Procedure: The pretend play ability of 35 preschool children aged 4–5 years was assessed using the ChIPPA. Parent/guardians of the children were interviewed regarding their child's social competence using the Vineland Social–Emotional Early Childhood Scales (Vineland SEEC Scales). Main Findings: No significant correlations were found between the children's play scores and their Vineland SEEC Scales scores. A significant and negative relationship was found between cooperation and sharing and elaborate play scores, suggesting that children who scored poorly on the play assessment were rated as cooperative by parents. Principal Conclusions: Parent report of social competence cannot be inferred from play scores. Reasons for the negative and significant finding are put forward and clinical implications of the findings are discussed. Additional investigations are necessary to further explore the construct validity of inferring social competence using the ChIPPA.