“Dibs in Search of Self” Book Analysis

The book “Dibs in Search of Self” lays major emphasis on how love is implemented and valued. It is a story of successful utilization of play therapy with a boy, Dibs, aged five-years old with emotional disturbance. While at nursery school, Dibs remains withdrawn and repels the attempts by his teachers when they try to engage him. Dibs’ parents and teachers give up regarding him as mentally retarded. While at home, he stays mute and in seclusion with his family members regarding him as a source of shame. Dibs’ family even considers taking him to a school meant for the mentally retarded. However, Axline helps the child by employing various therapy sessions for several months, and eventually cures him, realizing that his IQ is 168. Axline adopts an emotional approach to Dibs to ensure that he realizes self-discovery from the repression he faced at home. Axline focuses on making sure that Dibs becomes the individual he was meant to be by applying the cognitive psychology principles mostly focusing on reflective listening. The healing and development process proves emotionally demanding and difficult. Nonetheless, Axline does not give up on Dibs, but rather nudges him gently until he manages to confront his anxieties and fears and find himself (Axline, 1986) . From the story, love is implemented when Axline shows compassion and emotional concern for Dibs while maintaining a counterintuitive emotional distance with the love-starved child. Axline realizes that what Dibs needs is to find himself in ways that satisfy him without the need of confusing him with the approval of adults. The concern that Axline directs toward Dibs depicts the love she has for him in realizing self-discovery. Dibs feels valued based on the approach that Axline adopts to treat him to an extent that he discovers himself and proves to have a quite high IQ. Thus, the love and value that Dibs experiences contributes to his discovery.

Reference

Axline, V. M. (1986). Dibs in search of self: The renowned, deeply moving story of an emotionally lost child who found his way back. New York: Ballantine Books.