Recreational therapists address development in physical, cognitive, social, and behavioral domains, with the objective of enhancing age-appropriate and autonomous community functioning, as appropriate to the individual’s interests, needs, and potential. Interventions may include structured skills education; age-appropriate play and social opportunities; community functioning education; integrated experiences with same-age peers without developmental disabilities; and individualized coaching toward progressive integration into normal community settings. The following outcomes of a variety of interventions included in recreational therapy’s scope of practice have been documented.

Improvement in Physical Functioning: Participants in physical recreation activities demonstrated improvements in perceptual-motor skill, balance, agility, and athletic skill.

Improvement in Cognitive Functioning: Participants in activity and recreational skills training demonstrated increased attention span, problem solving, and decision making skills.

Improvement in Communication and Social Skills: Participants in social skills training activities demonstrated increased skills in conversation, assertion, cooperation, and competition.

Reduction in Non-Adaptive or Inappropriate Behavior: Participants in structured physical and social activities, especially those encouraging choice and control, demonstrated significant decreases in self-stimulating, stereotypic, self-abusive, or other non-adaptive or inappropriate behavior.

Increase in Age-Appropriate Behavior in Community: Participants in social and activity skill training interventions demonstrated increased age-appropriate choices and activity participation in integrated community settings.

Enhancement of Friendship and Social Support Networks: Participants in integrated camping experiences demonstrated increased social interaction skills and friendships with both developmentally disabled and non-developmental disabled peers.

The efficacy of structured recreational therapy interventions have been addressed in several studies, yielding the following health outcomes:

Integrated recreational programs were demonstrated to significantly increase social skills and interaction, recreational skill acquisition, and friendships with non-developmentally disabled peers.

Structured educational interventions addressing recreational, social, decision making, and community functioning skills were demonstrated to result in significant increases in assertiveness, initiation, and engagement in activities of choice, to reduce inappropriate or stereotypic behaviors, and to increase age-appropriate behaviors.

Recreational Therapy: A Summary of Health Outcomes, American Therapeutic Recreation Association