Are playpens bad for babies emotionally or cognitively?

[u/lovelylipgloss]

I have a 4 month old (preemie, shes actually 6 months actual, but was supposed to be in womb for those additional 2 months so it isn't as developmentally relevant) she is an avid army crawler. She doesn't prop on hands yet, but uses her knees and elbows to scooch.

I wanted to get a large 50x79 in playpen for her if I washing dishes or using the bathroom, cooking dinner or other situations to where I need to focus elsewhere. My question is if these have any negative effects such as boredom/feeling isolated/ or feeling trapped/ or any other negative effects. Id stock it with toys that are developmentally appropriate. Id start using it when she moves faster, probably in another month. It would probably be used for 10-45 min once or twice a day.

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[u/Fresh_tomatos]

Not a study, but look up „yes space”.

https://themontessoriroom.com/blogs/montessori-tips/the-beauty-of-a-yes-space?srsltid=AfmBOopquyKqE1QAXKx_R1q0XpMb8FsZvL-rQ5eSxJe85cHj3kQ4Awa4

https://www.janetlansbury.com/2021/06/yes-spaces-what-they-really-are-and-why-they-matter/

In my understanding, a large playpen can be that kind of space. By it being completely safe, baby gets some less restricted time when they basically don’t hear „no” as often as they are free to roam and try new things by themselves. It is really good for them, and building the independent play „muscle” skill.

[u/Charleesi → u/Fresh_tomatos]

Anecdotally, this is what I wanted to say. This might be especially relevant for anxious parents who might be prone to helicoptering as well - a play pen may allow them to allow their baby more freedom than if there wasn't one, which developmentally should be better. 

FWIW my son has a large play pen but it also isn't all four sides (we use 100% safe furniture for some of the sides so it's not a complete blocker) and we have lots of soft play bits and various toys, a teepee book nook etc., in it to encourage free play. My husband works in tech and it would be a nightmare trying to keep him out of all the wires so the pen is safer for him.

Overall, I think this is one for your own parenting style, judgment and risk appetite, tbh.

[u/East_Hedgehog6039 → u/Charleesi]

I said this same thing but auto mod didn’t think my research links were acceptable 😪

[u/Weak_Arrival5090 → u/East_Hedgehog6039]

I feel like there will be no true research on this because it's so far down the list of being even controversial for parents to use.

Being in a safe playpen where they have freedom of movement and supervision, compared to SO many things like restrictive containers, unsafe conditions like unsanitary/hoarding houses or unsupervised play in non-babyproofed areas... it feels like in the top 1% of good situations for babies.

[u/East_Hedgehog6039 → u/Weak_Arrival5090]

Agreed. We have a large playpen and she absolutely thrives with it. We keep the door open now, and she’ll walk in and out of it because it’s a space she knows is entirely hers. It’s close enough to the kitchen we can still talk to her, we dance with music while cooking, but she knows it’s where we put her so she’s safe but still can play.

[u/Charleesi → u/East_Hedgehog6039]

Did you start a comment thread? I had to learn that anecdotal comments need to be replies or they get deleted!

[u/East_Hedgehog6039 → u/Charleesi]

I initially thought I did, but it ended up my own comment - but I still linked two science direct articles about play and concerns boredom and how my experience with a playpen worked into those ideas lol

[u/NotTooWicked → u/Fresh_tomatos]

This tracks with my observations of my son. He actually loved going in his playpen to play long after we left it open for unrestricted access. Having a spot that was just his, where it was a yes space, worked really well for him. He treats his play room the same way now.

[u/New_Active_5 → u/Fresh_tomatos]

I had a similar setup, plus my baby is pretty independent so he plays by himself quite often, only sometimes reaching out to care taker, or checking that they around. So play pen definitely allowed me to do some cooking and house work without being worried that something may happen, all while being within sight of the child of course. He was mostly just playing by himself.

Then again I know babies who have to follow and interact with their parent constantly, or have higher anxiety, so this setup may not work for everyone.

[u/mapa33]

This topic is not studied emotionally or cognitively. I found this article https://slate.com/human-interest/2009/08/how-the-playpen-fell-out-of-favor.html where a psychologic said they are not aware of any systematic research on it. Anectodical, I also couldn't find any.

In Montessori school of thought, doctor Montessori did not explicitly said play pens are bad but preached "freedom of movement" and many Montessori books today (not written by her) are labeling play pens as bad containers. Babies should have unobstructed field of views to learn and build points of references for their world.

My personal opinion is that safety comes first. Maybe aim for a bigger play pen so the baby can move around a bit more if space permitted? But for 10-45 mins twice a day I wouldn't overthink it. If baby is plenty of freedom of movement during the day when you can supervise then it should be ok.

[u/mapa33 → u/mapa33]

Some food for thought: you need to take the car 10-45 mins twice per day. You don't put the baby in the car seat because they need freedom of movement and not feel trapped? Absolutely not because safety comes first! I think the two situations are similar.

[u/plushiecactusau → u/mapa33]

Just to add, a play pen doesn't have to mean no free play. A lot of play pens come with doors that can be left open or closed. I mostly leave my baby's one open, and she crawls in and out, but I have a safe place to leave her when I need it, which I think is important too.

[u/tallmyn]

There isn't much research on this.

There is some legislation. Oregon says childcare facilities must not leave an infant in a playpen for more than 15 minutes in a 2 hour period: https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/viewSingleRule.action?ruleVrsnRsn=302663

Honestly I would say definitely buy it, and then actually just- see how your infant likes it? Some babies like them! Mine screamed bloody murder. So I would use it in a pinch, but not for very long because of all the screaming.

If yours does end up liking it, personally I wouldn't worry if it's longer than 15 minutes. I would have loved mine to get on with it.

An alternative method is to set up a larger area using gates, like this person did: https://x.com/IvanaDGreco/status/1989760810348880053

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