Perpetration-induced Traumatic Stress in Persons Who Euthanize Nonhuman Animals in Surgeries, Animal Shelters, and Laboratories

Bibliographic Data

ID12418673
AuthorsPauleen C Bennett (0000-0001-5864-4464, corresponding author), Vanessa Rohlf (0000-0001-6707-0757)
Year2005
Volume13
Issue3
Pages201-220
Publication date2005-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSociety and Animals (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1063-1119 • E-ISSN: 1568-5306
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/1568530054927753
PMID16270455
OpenAlexW1990133134
LanguageEN
Citations received36
References cited9

This study explored possible identification of Perpetration-induced Traumatic Stress (PITS) in workers whose occupations required euthanizing nonhuman animals and determining whether event or person-related factors influenced symptoms. The sample included 148 animal workers: veterinarians, veterinary nurses, and research and animal shelter staff. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) assessed traumatic stress. Experimenters constructed additional scales measuring satisfaction with social support, participation in various types of training, and concern over animal death. More than 70% of participants reported affinity toward animals had strongly influenced their occupation selection. Half the sample perceived animal death--particularly euthanasia--as one of the least desirable jobs. Of the sample, 11% reported experiencing moderate levels of traumatic symptoms. The study found lower levels of euthanasia-related stress were associated with increased satisfaction with social support and length of time working with animals. Those who reported high levels of concern about animal death reported higher levels of euthanasia-related stress. The study found occupational context was not associated with different levels of euthanasia-related stress symptoms--even though reasons for administering euthanasia differed significantly between occupations

Animal welfare · Animal-assisted therapy · Biology · Companion animal · Context (archaeology · HUBzero · Pet therapy · Scale (ratio · Stress (linguistics · Traumatic stress · Veterinary medicine · Agriculture and Farm Safety · Animal testing and alternatives · Clinical Psychology · Human-Animal Interaction Studies · Medicine · Psychology

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