Playground Guide - 2022 - 15

ideas, increase their creativity, be more willing to hear the
viewpoints of others, and be open to more ideas.
The fifth factor is preplanning. Preplanning is when each
individual team member considers the skills they bring to
the team, so they can communicate this expertise when it
is needed. When the team meets as a group, preplanning
is a time when a clear vision of the playground design and
build is developed. This clear vision then allows the group
to develop its identity, team roles and responsibilities, and
areas of need.
The sixth factor is providing adequate resources. Team
leaders not only serve the interprofessional team that
they lead, but also the community where the future playground
will be built. For this reason, it is important that
both groups feel that team leaders hear them when they
make requests for resources that will help them achieve
their goals. The request for additional resources or help
is the prime opportunity for compassionate leadership.
Ensure team members and community members know
it is acceptable to speak up when adequate resources are
not available and provide the proper channels to express
concerns. When tough decisions must be made (e.g., not
enough money to purchase specific play equipment),
team leaders should have appropriate conversations
about the decision-making process, explain the rationale
behind the decisions, and emphasize how allocated resources
support the overall project goals and priorities.
The seventh factor is minimizing " turf " issues. Given
the number of decision-makers on the interprofessional
team, there is potential for a turf war. Turf wars occur because
situations involve egos, emotions and an individual's
sense of identity. A playground design and build must
be approached like a staircase with each step providing a
series of choices with different functions and parts. For example,
one step of the staircase may be playground surfacing.
Another step may be construction permits. Each
decision-maker has different areas of expertise. Therefore,
each step of the playground design and build should be
assigned to the individual with the closest alignment of
expertise (e.g., construction/playground equipment installer
decision-maker in charge of construction permits; child
specialist decision-maker in charge of playground equipment
selection). If a step does not have a logical choice for a
decision-maker, then negotiations should take place between
decision-makers with unassigned tasks. For example,
if the steps explore shade structures and analyze needs
assessment data were unassigned tasks, the decisionmakers
who did not have a task responsibility would negotiate
which task they would prefer to do. If all decisionmakers
were assigned a task and there are tasks that need
to be assigned to someone, then a few decision-makers
will be asked to take on an additional task.
Time, Patience, Perseverance
These guiding factors create an environment in which
interprofessional collaboration can thrive. Playground
managers should keep in mind that interprofessional
collaboration takes time. When new teams form, they
must remember that collaboration takes time, patience
and perseverance, which is supported by their leadership
and their ability to think long term. They also must
realize that the relationships that team members form
do matter. It is critical that playground managers work
diligently to build the relationships between the team
members. Hosting social events at the onset of the team
creation will help to establish stronger bonds between
members. They must then encourage " pockets " of team
members to organize and meet on their own time once
bonds begin to form. Reinforcing these bonds whenever
possible is crucial for interprofessional collaboration success.
When playground managers bring the right skills
to the table, adopt the right mindset and incorporate the
appropriate interprofessional collaborative factors into
the mix, the magic of a quality playground design and
build can happen.
Tina L. Stanton-Chapman, Ph.D., is a Professor of Early Childhood
Education and Human Development at University of Cincinnati. D. Michael
Malone, Ph.D., is a Professor of Early Childhood Education and Human
Development at University of Cincinnati.
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Playground Guide - 2022

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