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Dog Ownership and Training Reduces Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms and Increases Self-Compassion Among Veterans: Results of a Longitudinal Control Study
Contributor(s):: Bergen-Cico, D., Smith, Y., Wolford, K., Gooley, C., Hannon, K., Woodruff, R., Spicer, M., Gump, B.
Objectives: The aims of this study were to measure the potential impact of a therapeutic dog ownership and training program for Veterans with symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Design: The study used a quasi-experimental design with two cohorts of Veterans-a dog owner-trainer intervention and a...
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Describing the Use of Animals in Animal-Assisted Intervention Research
Contributor(s):: Ng, Zenithson, Morse, Laura, Albright, Julia, Viera, Ann, Souza, Marcy
Currently, there has been growing attention to animal welfare in animal-assisted interventions (AAI). However, there is a lack of scrutiny regarding what steps to take to ensure animal wellbeing during AAI research. The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) reviews, monitors, and...
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Does Anthropomorphism of Dogs Affect Pain Perception in Animal-Assisted Interventions? An Exploratory Study
Contributor(s):: Turner-Collins, Clare, Breitenbecher, Kimberly H.
The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine the effects of anthropomorphism of a therapy dog on pain perception during an animal-assisted intervention. Participants were 32 college women who were randomly assigned to the anthropomorphism condition or the control condition. All...
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Therapy Dogs Improve Student Affect but Not Memory
Contributor(s):: Trammell, Janet P.
While students are increasingly struggling with anxiety and depression, the effects of therapy dogs on student stress has only recently been explored. This study was conducted to investigate whether therapy dogs can improve student affect and to determine if these benefits extend to cognition in...
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Living and Robotic Dogs as Elicitors of Social Communication Behavior and Regulated Emotional Responding in Individuals with Autism and Severe Language Delay: A Preliminary Comparative Study
Contributor(s):: Silva, Karine, Lima, Mariely, Santos-Magalhães, André, Fafiães, Carla, Sousa, Liliana de
The inclusion of animals and robots in therapeutic interventions for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has become more common. This study provides a first comparison between the potential of living versus robotic dogs to elicit social communication behavior and regulated emotional responses in...
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Loneliness, Depression, and Physical Activity in Older Adults: The Therapeutic Role of Human–Animal Interactions
Contributor(s):: Krause-Parello, Cheryl A., Gulick, Elise E., Basin, Basilia
The global population of older persons is projected in 2050 to reach approximately 2.1 billion. As people age, feelings of loneliness, depression, and physical inactivity often occur due to a multitude of reasons. These feelings may manifest and cause adverse health outcomes. With the predicted...
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A Systematic Review of Research on Pet Ownership and Animal Interactions among Older Adults
Contributor(s):: Gee, Nancy R., Mueller, Megan K.
Research on the impact of companion animals in the lives of older adults is considered from two perspectives: pet ownership and in animal-assisted interventions (AAI). This paper first presents a discussion of potential theoretical explanations of the impact of animals on human health and...
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Future Directions for Research on Human–Animal Interaction in an Aging Population
Contributor(s):: Gee, Nancy R., Galik, Elizabeth
This final paper in the thematic issue, “Human–Animal Interaction and Healthy Human Aging,” highlights and distills key points from the series of papers and provides recommendations for improving and expanding Human–Animal Interaction (HAI) research into healthy human aging. This paper also...
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Relationship of Behavioral Interactions during an Animal-assisted Intervention in Assisted Living to Health-related Outcomes
Contributor(s):: Friedmann, Erika, Galik, Elizabeth, Thomas, Sue A., Hall, Sue, Cheon, Jooyoung, Han, Narae, Kim, Hee Jun, McAtee, Sherry, Gee, Nancy R.
In recent research involving assisted-living residents with mild to moderate cognitive impairment, a structured 12-week Pet Assisted Living (PAL) intervention led to improved physical activity (PA) and mood. Receipt of intervention is important to the efficacy of behavioral interventions. We...
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Employee Attitudes about the Impact of Visitation Dogs on a College Campus
Contributor(s):: Foreman, Anne M., Allison, Penelope, Poland, Michelle, Meade, B. Jean, Wirth, Oliver
Therapy and visitation dogs are becoming more common on college campuses to provide comfort and support to students, but little attention has been given to the concerns of faculty and staff who share space with the dogs in their workplaces. The purpose of this study was to assess the perceptions...
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The Effect of a Canine-assisted Activity on College Student Perceptions of Family Supports and Current Stressors
Contributor(s):: Barker, Sandra B., Barker, Randolph T., McCain, Nancy L., Schubert, Christine M.
Using data from a previously published study on effects of a canine-assisted activity (CAA) on college student stress the week before final examinations, we examined whether participation in this activity had effects on perceptions of 1) family supports (i.e., emotional distance to family members...
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A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials of Animal-Assisted Therapy on Psychosocial Outcomes
Contributor(s):: Maujean, Annick, Pepping, Christopher A., Kendall, Elizabeth
The use of animal-assisted interventions (aaIs) to achieve psychological benefits has expanded rapidly over the last few years. However, this is a vastly under-researched area, and the research to date has been largely descriptive, in the form of case studies, or has used only small groups of...
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Persistence during Tasks with Horses in Relation to Social Support, General Self-efficacy and Self-esteem in Adolescents
Contributor(s):: Hauge, Hilde, Kvalem, Ingela L., Enders-Slegers, Marie-José, Berget, Bente, Braastad, Bjarne O.
In young people, interactions with horses may contribute to the development of social skills and self-efficacy. Our aim was to identify relationships between psychological variables and young people's experience of activities with horses. Participants in this study were 13–15-year-old adolescents...
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The Effect of an Animal-Assisted Intervention on Anxiety and Pain in Hospitalized Children
Contributor(s):: Barker, Sandra B., Knisely, Janet S., Schubert, Christine M., Green, Jeffrey D., Ameringer, Suzanne
Forty children between the ages of 8 and 18 years, who were admitted to a hospital pediatric unit, were randomly assigned to an animal-assisted intervention (AAI) or an active control condition (working on an age-appropriate jigsaw puzzle). Ratings of pain and anxiety were taken both pre- and...
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Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Occurrence of ESKAPE Bacteria Group in Dogs, and the Related Zoonotic Risk in Animal-Assisted Therapy, and in Animal-Assisted Activity in the Health Context
Contributor(s):: Santaniello, A., Sansone, M., Fioretti, A., Menna, L. F.
Animal-assisted interventions are widely implemented in different contexts worldwide. Particularly, animal-assisted therapies and animal-assisted activities are often implemented in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and other health facilities. These interventions bring several benefits to...
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Risks associated with animal-assisted intervention programs: A literature review
Contributor(s):: Dalton, K. R., Waite, K. B., Ruble, K., Carroll, K. C., DeLone, A., Frankenfield, P., Serpell, J. A., Thorpe, R. J., Jr., Morris, D. O., Agnew, J., Rubenstein, R. C., Davis, M. F.
The benefits of animal-assisted interventions (AAI), to utilize companion animals as an adjunctive treatment modality, is well-established and a burgeoning research field. However, few studies have evaluated the potential hazards of these programs, such as the potential for therapy animals to...
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A Proposal for a Comprehensive Human-Animal Approach of Evaluation for Animal-Assisted Interventions
Contributor(s):: Lerner, H.
Background: An important field of human-animal interactions is animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), which refers to research on human-animal interactions in order to promote or facilitate health or education in humans. Very few studies among the rich literature on AAIs seem to include aspects of...
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Parental Perspectives of Occupational Therapy in an Equine Environment for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Contributor(s):: Kalmbach, D., Wood, W., Peters, B. C.
This paper reports on the qualitative phase of a mixed methods study of occupational therapy in an equine environment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The study's quantitative phase found that this intervention improved the occupational performance, social motivation, social...
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Equine-Assisted Intervention to Improve Perceived Value of Everyday Occupations and Quality of Life in People with Lifelong Neurological Disorders: A Prospective Controlled Study
Contributor(s):: Palsdottir, A. M., Gudmundsson, M., Grahn, P.
People with neurological disorders suffer from poor mobility, poor balance, fatigue, isolation and monotonous everyday activities. Studies show that equine-assisted interventions can improve their mobility and balance, but could these kinds of interventions also increase participants' activity...
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The Best Medicine: Personal Pets and Therapy Animals in the Hospital Setting
Contributor(s):: Barchas, D., Melaragni, M., Abrahim, H., Barchas, E.
Companion animals can have a positive impact on people's health and well-being. Personal pet visitation and animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) can benefit patients' pain, blood pressure, stress, depression, and anxiety, as well as increasing mobility and socialization with staff and families....
