Cand. Sci. (Psychology), Senior Researcher, The Center for Socio-Cultural Problems of Modern Education, The Federal Scientific Center for Psychological and Interdisciplinary Research, Moscow, Russian Federation
Background. The family environment plays a decisive role in shaping a child’s cultural orientations, including play activity. However, parents’ perceptions of play may not align with its subjective meaning for the child. In this context, it is essential to understand how adults notice, interpret, and evaluate their children’s play, as they are the ones who create the conditions for the development of this activity.
Objective. To identify the characteristics of parental perceptions of play preferences among toddlers and preschoolers, depending on the family’s sociocultural status (parents’ education level and family structure) and the child’s gender and age.
Sample. The study involved 42.530 parents (aged 18–56) of children aged 2 to 7 years from various regions of the Russian Federation, including 41.234 women and 1,296 men.
Methods. A parental questionnaire survey was conducted as part of the study. A questionnaire designed to study parents’ perceptions of children’s gaming preferences was used to collect data. It was developed under the supervision of V.S. Sobkin at the Center for Sociology of Education of the Russian Academy of Education in 1997 and modified in 2025. Respondents were asked to sel ect up to five types of play their child preferred fr om a list of twelve categories. Additional sociodemographic data about the family were also collected. Data analysis employed methods of mathematical statistics, including frequency analysis, Pearson’s chi-square (c²) test, and exploratory factor analysis (principal component method with Varimax rotation), using SPSS Statistics 27.
Results. The findings revealed differences in how parents perceive the play preferences of preschool-aged boys and girls, depending on family structure and parental education level. Two bipolar factors emerged in parental perception of children’s play types: “Creative Self-Expression vs. Spatial Exploration” and “Independent Rule-Following vs. Adult Supervision,” along with one unipolar factor: “Child’s Investigative Stance.”
Conclusions. The data highlight specific patterns in how parents perceive their children’s play. These perceptions are shaped by parental gender stereotypes: creative and emotionally expressive forms of activity are more frequently attributed to girls, while physically active and constructive types of play are associated with boys. This polarization appears as early as toddlerhood and persists throughout the preschool years. Moreover, parents’ ability to recognize manifestations of initiative, imagination, and investigative interest in their child’s play is linked to their level of education.
Background. Time spent with family is a significant factor influencing the child’s successful development, including gender socialization. Mothers and fathers probably prefer different activities when spending time together with children of different genders. Considering that different types of activities have a heterogeneous effect on a child’s personality, the choice of different joint activities can play a significant role in their development. But in modern psychology, family leisure activities in the aspect of parent-child relationships have been little studied by domestic authors.
Objectives. The study aims to identify gender characteristics of joint leisure time of parents with their preschool children.
Sample. The study involved 42 864 parents of preschool-age children aged 18 to 56 years: 41 551 women and 1 313 men from different regions of the Russian Federation.
Methods. The study was conducted on the basis of the author’s questionnaire aimed at studying the parents’ perception of various aspects of preschool children’s lives. Data processing was carried out using frequency and factor analysis.
Results. Study results showed differences in leisure activities of fathers and mothers with their boys and girls. Two key bipolar factors of parents’ preferences for types of joint leisure were identified: “Practically oriented forms of activity — Playful forms of activity” and “Artistic, aesthetic activity — “Cognitive” activity”.
Conclusions. The obtained data allow us to record the features of family leisure with children. Firstly, modern parents strive to spend time with their children, choosing traditional types of family pastime. Secondly, the features of family leisure activities are gender-specific: mothers are focused on practical benefits, while fathers prefer play. In addition, parents with girls and boys choose different directions of activities. Thirdly, important contribution to full-fledged leisure activities with a preschooler is made by family completeness: in single-parent families, the frequency of play forms of child-parent interaction decreases.
Background. The value of the children’s game lies in its developing potential, which determines the need to support it by adults, especially parents. Research indicates that such support contributes to better developmental outcomes in children. Moreover, parents can retain a love for play throughout their lives. Adults inclined toward playfulness report higher life satisfaction and greater engagement in life. Parental playfulness fosters spontaneity and creativity in parent-child interactions. It can be hypothesized that positive childhood play experiences influence adults’ life satisfaction and their attitudes toward their children’s play.
Objective. Analysis of the relationship between life satisfaction and the attitude of their children to the game with memories of the game in childhood.
Sample. The study involved 282 participants (229 women, 53 men) aged 21 to 69.
Methods. The study employed the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) by Diener et al. (1985) in the Russian adaptation by D.A. Leontiev and E.N. Osin (Osin, Leontiev, 2008; 2020), along with an original questionnaire assessing memories of childhood play and attitudes toward children’s play.
Results. Overall life satisfaction scores showed no direct correlation with memories of childhood play. However, associations were found between specific SWLS subscales and play-related memories. Links were also identified between recollections of personal play experiences and attitudes toward children’s play.
Conclusions. Individuals with positive memories of supported play and playful interactions with adults in childhood reported higher life satisfaction and perceived themselves as more successful in key life domains. Positive childhood play experiences shape an understanding of play’s importance for children and influence parenting approaches. Adults with such experiences, as parents, are more likely to create conditions that foster similar play experiences for their own children.
Relevance. This article is devoted to the problem of comparative analysis of preschoolers’ drawings on the theme “My family”, brought up in a full or incomplete family. This topic is extremely relevant not only because of the increase in divorces in Russia and the related difficulties of raising and developing young children, but also from the point of view of the data collection method. Typically, surveys of parents and other caring adults are used in such studies, while the “voice of a child” remains unaccounted for. The purpose of this work is to explore the possibilities of using children’s drawings to diagnose the peculiarity of the social situation of development in a modern family and the emotional well–being of a child in the family.
Research methodology and progress. The projective technique “Family Drawing” as modified by the authors was used in the work. The study involved 44 children from 4 years 9 months to 7 years, average age 5 years 10 months; 18 boys and 26 girls (41% and 59%).
The result of the study made it possible to confirm the invariance of the significance of various parameters of the children’s drawing on the theme “My family” over the past 25 years. Three key bipolar factors were identified for evaluating children’s family drawings: “Structured relationships in the family – Adult dominance”, “Inclusion in the family structure – Detachment from the family” and “Loneliness – Positive emotional connection with the father”.
Conclusions. These factors make it possible to record the peculiarities of the emotional well-being of modern boys and girls raised in full and incomplete families. Firstly, the girls’ drawings clearly show positive emotional well-being, identification with the mother and orientation towards traditional gender-role relationships in the family, while the boys’ drawings are distinguished by the dominance of the parental position of adults and the child’s identification with the family as a special social group. Secondly, the emotional well-being of children from single-parent families is clearly worse than that of children from full families, and boys from single-parent families find themselves in the most difficult social situation of development.
The value of the role play for the children’s development and status of the game as the leading activity of preschool children is not questioned, but in order to fulfill its leadership role and actually become a valuable tool for the development of personal qualities, the game itself should have a certain level of development.
The study was conducted in the older groups in Moscow kindergartens (112 children aged 5-6 years). During the observations the following indicators of play development were registered: plot of the game, role fulfillment, quality of interaction between children in role play and in real-life communication, level of development of play operations, usage of substitute items, means of game space creation.
Results showed that 60% of older preschoolers demonstrated low levels of the play development; average level was met fulfilled by 35% of children; high level was recorded only as an exception.
Play is called to be of the special importance in Russian federal government requirements for preschool education program. However, in this precise formulation an ambivalent attitude to the game can be found: on the one hand, it is “the main form of work with preschool children,” and on the other - the leading activity of preschool children. This duality provides a definite risk of utilitarian use of play and replacing it by traditional training sessions. Bringing toys and fairy tales in the classroom can not be considered as a sufficient condition for true play appearance. The advanced game is independent and free in its nature; it involves the creation of an imaginary situation, the simultaneous existence of the child in the real and imaginary space.
Background. The trends of developing child friendly urban environment result in designing of play areas in places which are not specifically made for children: train stations, cafes, shopping centers, etc. The design of such places requires research of children’s behavior, understanding and experience of using play equipment and materials. This article deals with children’s play spaces in trains and at railway stations in Moscow.
The purpose of the study is to highlight the principles of organizing play environment and equipment at train stations, airports, in trains.
Play spaces at the railway stations and toy`s sets for kids in trains were analyzed according to the basis criteria of the examination of play spaces and toys. Based on the data obtained, the principles of organizing space were proposed, taking into account the special conditions in traveling (a large number of people, rush, small space, children of different ages, etc.).
Research results. The study showed that play spaces at railway stations are unsuitable for children’s age needs: they are like copies of typical street playgrounds, include the same equipment, designed for kids aged just 2-5 years and mostly for movement and not for the role play. In trains play spaces are better adapted for cognitive and productive activities of children, while play and motor activity are ignored. Play sets are also designed for age 3-6 and require significant changing. This analysis allows us to identify 3 key principles of organizing children’s space in trips. Creating a children’s space, it is necessary to consider the duration of trips, the capacity and possibility of a place, age specific of play, speech and other activities of children. It is also important to focus on the features of age and remember that adults are the mandatory companions of the child in traveling. This study can serve as a basis for a more detailed and large-scale study of the issue of children’s spaces, as well as a general guideline for evaluating and designing such play spaces.