Background and Objectives: Play is defined as any type of targeted physical or mental activity which is done individually or in group and develops children needs. This study aimed at effectiveness of play therapy on symptoms of emotional, behavioral and problem-solving skills in children in foster care centers.

Material and Methods: The study population included all 7-10 years old children (a total of 1284) residing in foster care centers in Tabriz in 2017. A sample of 30 was selected by convenience-random method and were divided in to experimental and control groups equally (15 in each group). The research tools included play therapy package, computer-based problem-solving test, and Children's Symptoms Questionnaire scale. Experimental group received 10 play therapy sessions according to Hansen, Meissler, and Ovens protocol but control group received no intervention. The scale of the problem and components hyperactivity, conduct, behavior, disease, generalized anxiety, phobia, obsessive-compulsive, post-traumatic stress and tick scale was Children's Symptoms Questionnaire scale. The experimental group received 8 sessions each individually.

Results: Analysis of the data showed that play therapy promotes problem-solving, reduces hyperactivity, conduct, abnormal behavior, generalized anxiety, phobia and tics (P<0.001), but it had no significant impact on the obsessive–compulsive disorder of the subjects (P>0.005).

Conclusion: It can be concluded that play therapy is an effective method for behavioral and emotional disorders and improves problem-solving performance.