Table 1.

Changes in the nature of play

Ecological level	Theme	Grandparents’ era	Parents’ era	Children’s era
Child level	Less Imagination, More Technology	Kids’ games and using imagination	Some kids’ games and imagination, some technology	Few kids’ games, less imagination, more technology
Parent level	Safety Concerns	Few safety concerns	Some safety concerns	Extensive safety concerns
	Surveillance	Few parental restrictions on play	Some parental restrictions on play with little monitoring	Extensive parental restrictions on play and compulsory monitoring
Community level	Other Children to Play With	Few friends, but good friends	More friends living closer	Few friends to play with
		Extended family important	Extended family still important	Few extended family members close
	Purposeful Physical Activity	Walking/riding to meet friends out of necessity	Sometimes out of necessity, sometimes for recreation	Rare. Not out of necessity
	Play Spaces and Organized Activities	Few formal play spaces, no organized activities	More play spaces, some organized activities	Lots of play spaces and facilities, lots of organized activities
Social changes	Good Parenting Ideal	Virtually no parental involvement in play	Some parental involvement in play	Parental involvement in play expected and needed, but parents too busy working.