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Mastering Your Dragons: Using Tabletop Role-Playing Games in Therapy.

Sherry R Rosenblad¹, Tessa Wolford², Richard S Brennan³

¹Department of Clinical Counseling and Mental Health, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th St., Lubbock, TX 79430, USA.

Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland)

|April 26, 2025

Summary

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) offers a feasible therapeutic approach for various mental health conditions. This role-playing game (RPG) aids in social skills, identity exploration, and emotional growth for diverse patient groups.

Keywords:

Dungeons & Dragons creative methods in psychotherapy imagination in psychotherapy tabletop role-play games therapeutic technique

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Area of Science:

Psychology
Therapeutic Interventions
Game Studies

Background:

Role-playing games (RPGs) have a long history but their therapeutic application, particularly Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), faces challenges for non-gamers.
Mental health treatment can benefit from innovative, engaging modalities beyond traditional therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the feasibility and effectiveness of using Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) as a therapeutic tool.
To examine D&D's application in individual and group therapy for diverse mental health concerns and populations.

Main Methods:

Case studies of five individuals (ages 7-19) treated with RPGs for anxiety, depression, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), and nightmares.
Examination of group therapy settings for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), LGBTQ adolescents, and women in substance use/trauma recovery.

Main Results:

D&D integration in therapy showed successes and challenges, fostering social skills, identity exploration, trauma recovery, and emotional growth.
RPGs demonstrated flexibility and effectiveness in addressing diverse mental health issues through emotional exploration and personal development.

Conclusions:

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is a promising therapeutic intervention for various mental health concerns.
Further research is needed to validate long-term impacts and broaden clinical applications of RPGs in therapy.