“I Don’t Say It, I Do It”: Clinical Impact of Experiential Learning Through Therapeutic Games

Psychological evidence highlights that experiential learning facilitates the acquisition and generalization of clinical skills more effectively than passive verbal instruction. Kolb’s model (1984) and research on experiential therapies (Hayes et al., 2011; Linehan, 2015) show that active participation promotes deeper emotional processing and more stable changes (Elliott et al., 2004). This contrasts with more traditional strategies such as conventional psychoeducation, which, although useful for improving knowledge and adherence, tends to have smaller effects on emotional and behavioral change when not combined with action or guided practice (Donker et al., 2009; Păsărelu et al., 2017). Contemporary models, including third-wave therapies, converge on the idea that experiencing processes and skills improves emotion regulation and psychological flexibility beyond merely understanding them conceptually (Hayes et al., 2011).

In addition, the literature has shown that young people often display lower adherence to traditional verbal interventions, highlighting the need for experiential formats that increase engagement and facilitate the internalization of skills (Schaefer & Drewes, 2014). In this regard, therapeutic games offer a highly participatory format that enhances these experiential mechanisms and is particularly suitable for young populations, where active involvement is essential (Schaefer & Drewes, 2014). Although gamification is a well-established strategy in other areas of psychology, such as educational psychology, there is still a lack of research in clinical practice.

This symposium aims to examine, from conceptual, experimental, and applied perspectives, whether experiential dynamics in the form of therapeutic games can match or surpass the effectiveness of traditional psychoeducation in the acquisition of emotion regulation and cognitive analysis skills in clinical practice. Four presentations are included, combining conceptual development, experimental pilot studies, and case studies.

The first presentation explores the design and theoretical foundations of two therapeutic games: one based on the Process Model of Emotion Regulation (Gross, 1998) and the Integrative Model of Emotion Regulation (Hervás, 2011), and another grounded in cognitive processes such as the A–B–C model (Ellis, 1962), Cognitive Restructuring (Beck, 1976), and Cognitive Defusion (Hayes, 1999). The presentation describes the clinical needs that motivated the development of these tools, the theoretical framework guiding the game mechanics, and an initial pilot study that helped refine methodological issues to promote transparency and replicability in the design.

The second presentation introduces a controlled experimental pilot study with young adults aged 20 to 25. In this study, the experimental group used board games designed to foster emotion regulation and cognitive reflection, while the control group received traditional emotional and cognitive psychoeducation. Differences in emotional management skills, understanding of emotional analysis, and the acquisition of cognitive competencies are evaluated.

The third presentation describes an individual clinical case study in which a game focused on emotion regulation skills was applied. The study evaluates the extrapolability of the tool in individual therapy, the strengths and limitations of its clinical use, and the maintenance of therapeutic improvements at a three-month follow-up.

Finally, the fourth presentation presents another clinical case study in which a game focused on irrational beliefs, cognitive restructuring, and cognitive defusion was used. This allows the analysis of its applicability in individual therapeutic contexts and comparison with the outcomes typically expected from more traditional approaches.