Voluntary, intrinsically motivated recreation

Play (activity)

Play (activity)

Play is a range of <a href="/en/Motivation#Incentive_theories:_intrinsic_and_extrinsic_motivation" title="Motivation" class="wl">intrinsically motivated</a> activities done for <a href="/en/Recreational" title="Recreational" class="mw-redirect wl">recreational</a> pleasure and enjoyment.<a href="#cite_note-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;">[1]</a> Play is commonly associated with children and juvenile-level activities, but may be engaged in at any life stage, and among other higher-functioning animals as well, most notably <a href="/en/Mammals" title="Mammals" class="mw-redirect wl">mammals</a> and <a href="/en/Birds" title="Birds" class="mw-redirect wl">birds</a>.

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<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt4">Voluntary, intrinsically motivated recreation</div>
<figure class="mw-default-size wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship,_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship,_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG/300px-Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG" decoding="async" data-file-width="4320" data-file-height="3240" data-file-type="bitmap" height="225" width="300" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG/450px-Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG/600px-Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG 2x" alt="Playfulness_by_Paul_Manship%2C_1912-1914_-_DSC03107.JPG"></a><figcaption>Playfulness by <a href="/en/Paul_Manship" title="Paul Manship" class="wl">Paul Manship</a></figcaption></figure>

Many prominent researchers in the field of psychology, including <a href="/en/Melanie_Klein" title="Melanie Klein" class="wl">Melanie Klein</a>, <a href="/en/Jean_Piaget" title="Jean Piaget" class="wl">Jean Piaget</a>, <a href="/en/William_James" title="William James" class="wl">William James</a>, <a href="/en/Sigmund_Freud" title="Sigmund Freud" class="wl">Sigmund Freud</a>, <a href="/en/Carl_Jung" title="Carl Jung" class="wl">Carl Jung</a> and <a href="/en/Lev_Vygotsky" title="Lev Vygotsky" class="wl">Lev Vygotsky</a> have erroneously viewed play as confined to the human species, believing play was important for human development and using different research methods to prove their theories.

Play is often interpreted as frivolous; yet the player can be intently focused on their objective, particularly when play is structured and goal-oriented, as in a <a href="/en/Game" title="Game" class="wl">game</a>. Accordingly, play can range from relaxed, free-spirited and spontaneous through frivolous to planned or even compulsive.<a href="#cite_note-Huizinga-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a> Play is not just a pastime activity; it has the potential to serve as an important tool in numerous aspects of daily life for adolescents, adults, and cognitively advanced non-human species (such as primates). Not only does play promote and aid in physical development (such as <a href="/en/Hand-eye_coordination" title="Hand-eye coordination" class="mw-redirect wl">hand-eye coordination</a>), but it also aids in cognitive development and social skills, and can even act as a stepping stone into the world of integration, which can be a very stressful process. Play is something that most children partake in, but the way play is executed is different between cultures and the way that children engage with play varies universally.

Play is a range of intrinsically motivated activities done for recreational pleasure and enjoyment. Play is commonly associated with children and juvenile-level activities, but may be engaged in at any life stage, and among other higher-functioning animals as well, most notably mammals and birds. Many prominent researchers in the field of psychology, including Melanie Klein, Jean Piaget, William James, Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung and Lev Vygotsky have erroneously viewed play as confined to the human species, believing play was important for human development and using different research methods to prove their theories. Play is often interpreted as frivolous; yet the player can be intently focused on their objective, particularly when play is structured and goal-oriented, as in a game. Accordingly, play can range from relaxed, free-spirited and spontaneous through frivolous to planned or even compulsive. Play is not just a pastime activity; it has the potential to serve as an important tool in numerous aspects of daily life for adolescents, adults, and cognitively advanced non-human species . Not only does play promote and aid in physical development , but it also aids in cognitive development and social skills, and can even act as a stepping stone into the world of integration, which can be a very stressful process. Play is something that most children partake in, but the way play is executed is different between cultures and the way that children engage with play varies universally. 