Interaction with Shelter Dogs Reduces Negative Affect of Adolescents in Substance Use Disorder Treatment

Bibliographic Data

ID2161995
AuthorsLindsay Madden Ellsworth (Washington State University), Sarah L Tragesser, Sarah Tragesser (Washington State University), Ruth C Newberry (0000-0002-5238-6959, Washington State University)
Year2016
Volume29
Issue2
Pages247-262
Publication date2016-05-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAnthrozoös (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0892-7936 • E-ISSN: 1753-0377
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/08927936.2016.1152719
OpenAlexW2362918464
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited24

We investigated the effectiveness of a human–animal interaction program, involving dogs from an animal shelter, in improving affect of adolescent males in inpatient treatment for substance use disorder (SUD). We hypothesized that adolescents would experience improvements in affect and attitudes toward activities when participating in human–dog interaction activities (dog-interaction condition) compared with "treatment-as-is" recreational activities (control condition). Participants were assigned to weekly 1-h-long condition activities for 8 weeks (4 weeks per condition). Due to attrition, only the participants' first and second exposures to each condition were evaluated. Using a withinand between-subjects, repeated measures crossover design, we assessed effects of the two conditions on affective states as indexed by Positive and Negative Affect Scale-Expanded Form (PANAS-X) subscales (mixed linear model, n = 12). Attitudes toward doginteraction and control activities were assessed using a researcher-generated survey (ordered logistic regression, n = 14, mean age = 16.2 years). Condition impacted Hostility (F(1,31) = 6.55, p < 0.05) and Sadness (F(1,41) = 4.62, p < 0.05) subscale scores; scores were higher following the control condition and lower following the dog-interaction condition. There was a carryover effect of condition in the previous activity session on Sadness scores during the current activity session (F(1,41) = 4.32, p < 0.05), suggesting that the prior session experience affected current expectations. In the attitudes survey, the dog-interaction condition elicited more positive responses than the control condition (X2 ≥ 4.10, df = 1, p < 0.05). From this exploratory study, we conclude that the dog-interaction activities induced an improvement in affect, specifically within dimensions of negative affect, and participants had a more favorable attitude toward the dog activities than the treatment-as-is activities. Offering activities involving interaction with shelter dogs thus shows promise as a useful method for restoring responsiveness to naturally reinforcing (non-substance-related) affective stimuli in adolescents with SUD

Affect (linguistics · Anger · Animal welfare · Animal-assisted therapy · Hostility · HUBzero · Logistic regression · Pet therapy · Sadness · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Human-Animal Interaction Studies · Medicine · Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior · Psychology · Clinical Psychology · Internal Medicine

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