A Study on Changes in Perception of Play Therapy in the Post-COVID-19 Era Using Big Data Analysis

In this study, we explored public perceptions of play therapy in the news media before and after the occurrence of COVID-19 through big data analysis. To achieve this, we collected news articles containing the keyword 'play therapy' for the periods before and after the occurrence of COVID-19. Then we analyzed big data using Textom, extracting key keywords related to play therapy, and examined the relationships between keywords, and topics. As a result, at first, in the post-COVID-19 era compared to the pre-COVID-19 era, 'school violence' emerged as a significant word in the category of 'primary concern' and 'recovery' appeared as a significant word in the category of 'intervention purpose'. Second, in the pre-COVID-19 era, keywords such as 'child', 'program', 'parents', 'counseling', 'business', 'student', 'emotion', 'family', 'psychology' appeared. Whereas in the post-COVID-19 era, keywords such as 'child', 'program', 'counseling', 'children', 'business', 'therapy', 'family', 'health', 'psychological therapy' and 'strengthening' appeared. Third, topics related to play therapy in the pre-COVID-19 era included 'development and mental health', 'child and adolescent counseling', 'psychological support and welfare services', and 'family support counseling' as four clusters. In contrast to this, in the post-COVID-19 era, four clusters emerged as 'infant and toddler development and mental health intervention services', 'institutional therapy intervention services', 'support for children with disabilities', and 'child and adolescent counseling'. This study provided basic data that can be reflected in play therapy by better apprehending and understanding the public's perception of play therapy, which has increased since the pandemic.