Piloting PlayWrite: Feasibility and Efficacy of a Playwriting Intervention for At-Risk Adolescents

At-risk, disadvantaged, and marginalized youth are seldom afforded avenues for healthy self-expression—which, in turn, may further increase risk. Interventions using the arts are often proposed but are seldom formally evaluated. In the present pilot study, we evaluated a brief intensive intervention in which at-risk adolescents partner with professional coaches to write their own play, which is then performed before a live audience. Positive intervention effects were found in decreased hyperactivity/inattention, decreased anhedonia, and improved anger inhibition/suppression. These promising preliminary findings indicate that further study of this type of intervention is warranted.