Lego® Therapy: Why It Helps With Autism

🗓 Wed, 07 Dec 2022

According to a recent study published by Autism Research, 1 in 100 children worldwide (or 100 out of 10,000) have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This is a rise from the global prevalence survey from 2012, which discovered that 62 out of every 10,000 kids were autistic.

In general, people with autism have difficulty communicating and interacting with others. This condition can make it hard for them to form friendships and be a part of the social world. However, Lego® therapy has been shown to help people with autism.

Whether it's building Lego houses or playing with animal Lego sets, this improves their creativity, communication, and social skills. But how does it work? And could it really help?

Here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about Lego therapy

legos

Lego® therapy: How it works

The therapist leads the child and a small group through different activities using Lego®. The therapist will help guide the conversation and encourage positive social interactions between the children. This method helps improve communication skills because you have to talk to each other to figure out what to build.

And then, once you've created something together, you have to take turns playing with it. This helps improve social skills because you learn how to take turns and share space with others.

These Lego® therapy sessions would typically last at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour. This gives the child enough time to build and interact with the Lego bricks, but not so long that they become overwhelmed or frustrated. It is also important to have a break between sessions so the child can process what they have learned and take a breather from the stimulation.

What age is Lego® therapy suitable for?

While Lego® therapy is most commonly used with children, it is suitable for different age groups. Just as Lego is for every age. It is a form of play-based therapy that can be used to improve social skills, communication, and emotional regulation in children and adolescents.

There is a growing body of research demonstrating the efficacy of Lego® therapy which intrigued many people. They claimed that using Lego in therapy helps with a variety of conditions, such as autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and social anxiety disorder.

Although further scientific study is still needed to prove these claims, many parents and therapists swear by it and use it as part of therapy.

Children

Lego® therapy is often used aged 5-12 for children with autism. The therapist uses the Lego® bricks to build structures, which the child then has to reproduce. This helps the child to develop fine motor skills, as well as problem-solving and planning skills. Lego sets such as the Lego® Duplo® Wild Animals of South America are perfect for play-dates that encourages their social skills

Lego® Duplo 10973 Wild Animals of South America

Adults

Some people with autism continue to use and benefit from Lego® therapy well into adulthood. They help adults with autism develop essential life skills and improve their quality of life.

Apart from it, Lego therapy is a great way to help adults relax and de-stress. People who are seeking to relax from stressful occupations turn to building or collecting Lego sets, claiming that Lego helps them with relaxation and mindfulness (Bhattarai, 2020).

The growing demand from adult fans of Legos (AFOLs) continued to grow (and is still growing), prompting the Lego company to expand its market and produce sets specifically for adults. Some of the famous adult sets are the 1989 Batmobile, the Central Perk Cafe from the Friends sitcom and Lego Creator Expert Ghostbusters™ ECTO-1.

Lego® Creator Expert 10274 Ghostbusters™ ECTO-1

Although further studies are required to confirm that Lego® therapy really helps, keeping your hands busy on a focused task has been a part of therapies that helps encourage states of awareness that lead to lowering stress.

Is Lego® Therapy good for autism?

A few key reasons Lego® therapy works so well for children with autism.

  1. Lego is highly repetitive. This helps children with autism focus and stay on task.
  2. Lego is visual. This means that children with autism can see the results of their work immediately, which can be very satisfying.
  3. Working with Lego requires cooperative play. This gives children with autism an opportunity to practice social skills such as turn-taking and communication.

Is Lego® therapy evidence-based?

Lego® therapy was first developed in the UK by Dr. Daniel LeGoff, a clinical psychologist who works with children on the autism spectrum. He explains that the therapy works by giving people with autism a structured activity to focus on while providing them with opportunities to interact with others.

Several studies have shown that Lego therapy has behavioral and social benefits. Here are the following:

  1. Lowering hospitalization-related anxiety in young children of preschool age (Solihat, 2020)
  2. Children with social communication issues in the primary grades will have more independence and social confidence (Boyne, 2014)
  3. Greater desire to take the lead in social interactions, for as, by approaching another child with questions (Barakova, Bajracharya, Willemsen, Lourens, & Huskens, 2015)
  4. Parents of kids who participated in Lego Therapy groups usually stated that their kids had established friends with others there. (Evans, Sanders, & Knight, 2014)
  5. Significant decrease in negative behaviors like physical aggression, bedwetting, and temper tantrums, as well as avoiding responsibility(Owens, Granader, Humphrey, & Baron-Cohen, 2008)

Conclusion

Lego® has come a long way since it was originally introduced. It has evolved from simply being a kid's play toy to now using it as a therapy to aid people with autism.

It's fascinating how these popular and colorful plastic bricks which are made for kids to play and explore their creative side have developed to be a promising tool that can change kids' lives (or even adults' lives) as well.

If you have a child or know someone with autism, consider looking into Lego therapy as an option to help them reach their full potential. If you're not sure where to begin, seek help from professionals or explore the world of Lego yourself with some already-built Lego® sets. Check out our various Lego Deals from our Brickfact app. We have a wide selection of sets available at low prices, perfect for people of all ages. With the Brickfact app, you can easily compare prices from different providers and be notified whenever a new deal is available. The Brickfact app is free and available for both iOS and Android.

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