The National Institute for Play is a 501c(3) non-profit public benefit corporation dedicated to advancing society’s understanding and application of play — a long-ignored biological capability that can lead to healthier, happier lives.
Dr. Stuart Brown founded the National Institute for Play to study the scientific knowledge on play behavior and understand its implications. Thirty years later, there have been many discoveries indicating that play is life-giving:
Play that is based on our inner needs and desires is the only path to finding lasting satisfaction in our relationships and professional work.
The National Institute for Play supports play as a public health necessity. Like sleep, dreams, and nutrition, play is critical to our health and well-being. Research demonstrates that play improves our brain function, learning, creativity, and emotional resilience, while major play deprivation can have unhealthy consequences at any age. The NIFP recognizes, supports, and promotes the science of play.
We continually add links to pertinent books, articles, videos, etc. to our site as they become available. We monitor the wide range of science research on play to understand its impact on human lives and explain the research in clear, concise language. We are committed to providing an ever growing set of resources to our audience to help them benefit from play in their own lives and to enable them to support their children’s recognizing and nurturing their innate playfulness.
Over time we hope to help people:
Over the nearly 30 years since our founding we have followed the science of play, honored leading play researchers, created nationally broadcast videos explaining play, written and published a book available in 12 languages, and spoken to hundreds of audiences.
Over the nearly 30 years since our founding we have followed the science of play, honored leading play researchers, created nationally broadcast videos explaining play, written and published a book available in 12 languages, and spoken to hundreds of audiences.
The National Institute for Play is a 501(c)(3) non-profit public benefit corporation. We’d love your support to continue advancing our services.
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NIFPlay and Dr. Stuart Brown have been featured in these media outlets (and more!).
The Institute wants the world to know:
A) Playing, being playful, is the healthiest way to spend your time (after feeding and housing yourself).
B) The activities that evoke playful feelings are unique to each of us.
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