Brian Sutton-Smith

Brian Sutton-Smith (1924–2015) was a New Zealand–born scholar whose work helped establish play studies as a serious field of research. Trained in education and folklore, he became known for examining play across childhood, culture, and society, drawing on perspectives from anthropology, psychology, and literary theory. Sutton-Smith spent much of his career in the United States, where he taught and conducted research on games, storytelling, and the meanings people attach to play. He is widely recognized for his influential book *The Ambiguity of Play*, which argues that “play” cannot be reduced to a single definition and is best understood through its competing cultural narratives.