Current challenges to research on animal-assisted interventions

Serpell, James A.; McCune, Sandra; Gee, Nancy R.; Griffin, James A.

doi:10.1080/10888691.2016.1262775

Cited by 99 publications

(113 citation statements)

References 89 publications

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“…Similarly, the community cannot be confident that the treatments they are receiving have demonstrated efficacy. It is noteworthy that Serpell, McCune, Gee, and Griffin () have highlighted public and media pressure to report positive findings related to AAIs. Consequently, findings that show no effects, or where human or animal welfare might be compromised, are likely underreported, in both the academic and wider community literature.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An umbrella review of the evidence for equine‐assisted interventions

Stern

Chur‐Hansen

2019

Australian Journal of Psychology

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Objective: To establish the evidence base for animal-assisted interventions, and specifically, hippotherapy and other interventions involving horses, in the context of improving biological, physical, psychological and social functioning, and outcomes in humans. Method: A review of systematic reviews (an umbrella review) was carried out using a modified Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and following PRISMA guidelines. Inclusion criteria were any interventions that included a live horse, for humans of any age and for any therapeutic purpose. Service and assistance horses and people who were incarcerated were excluded. Systematic reviews with a clearly articulated and comprehensive search strategy, with evidence of critical appraisal, both qualitative and quantitative and mixed methods, and in English were considered. Results: Of 19 systematic reviews considered eligible for inclusion, 13 were included in this umbrella review. These 13 systematic reviews covered 79 individual studies of equine-assisted interventions, including primarily hippotherapy and therapeutic horse riding. Participants included children with cerebral palsy, children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, adults with multiple sclerosis, elderly people, adults post-stroke, people with spinal cord injury, adults with serious mental illness, adults with balance problems, people with brain disorders, breast cancer survivors, and obese women. Conclusions: The evidence for equine-assisted interventions for adults and children across a range of conditions and presentations is equivocal. The current evidence base is marred by multiple methodological weaknesses and thus, therapeutic interventions that include a horse cannot be asserted as best practice at this time. Rigorous research is indicated to determine the utility of equine-assisted interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An umbrella review of the evidence for equine‐assisted interventions

Stern

Chur‐Hansen

2019

Australian Journal of Psychology

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“…However, this gap does not seem to be shrinking in response to warnings from researchers. Researchers have attributed the persistence of the disparity between what we know about AAIs and how people perceive AAIs to sensational headlines and book titles, as well as overstatements of the literature by researchers and practitioners (e.g., Anestis et al., ; Herzog, ; Serpell et al., ). However, evidence from the present study communicates that perceptions of the AAI evidence cannot be attributed entirely to overstatements of the evidence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As positive attention to AAIs has increased, researchers repeatedly have emphasized that media claims, statements by the pet products industry, and public perceptions of AAIs go beyond the available evidence (e.g., Anestis, Anestis, Zawilinski, Hopkins, & Lilienfeld, ; Crossman, ; Herzog, ; Serpell, McCune, Gee, & Griffin, ). Common problems that limit the status of AAI research include failure to control for basic threats to validity (e.g., change over time), insufficient statistical power, and failure to disentangle the effects of the animals from other aspects of the interventions (Crossman, ; Kazdin, ; Marino, ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of animal‐assisted interventions: The influence of attitudes toward companion animals

Crossman

Kazdin

2017

J Clin Psychol

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“…A further reason for assessing variation in policy and practice among therapy dog organizations relates to the reproducibility of research on animal-assisted interventions (AAI). Published studies in this area often fail to report the source or background of the dog-handler teams that participate in research studies, thereby making it impossible to determine what standards or criteria, if any, were used to select and train the dogs and/or their handlers (13). Without this type of information, such studies cannot be accurately replicated or their findings independently verified.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current Standards and Practices Within the Therapy Dog Industry: Results of a Representative Survey of United States Therapy Dog Organizations

et al. 2020

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Organizations that deliver animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), as well as those that train, evaluate, and register therapy dogs, have proliferated in recent decades in the United States (U.S.). Each of these organizations has its own policies and procedures for screening, evaluating, and instructing dogs and their owners/handlers, but little is currently known about the range of different practices that exist nationwide. The aim of this project was to survey a representative, national sample of U.S. therapy dog organizations to investigate commonalities and differences in the types of practices in current use and to compare these to recommendations in existing published guidelines. The findings suggest the need for further research, and highlight a number of areas relating to dog welfare, human safety, and infection control in which many organizations were inconsistent in their adherence to existing guidelines. Of particular concern with regard to animal welfare was the finding that approximately half of the organizations surveyed imposed no time limit on the length of visits. Also, given the potential for zoonotic disease transmission, the finding that only a small minority of organizations prohibit the feeding of raw meat diets and treats to visiting dogs is concerning. This information will help to raise awareness among facilities with therapy animal programs and assist in the development of future best practices within the therapy dog industry.

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Current challenges to research on animal-assisted interventions

Cited by 99 publications

References 89 publications

An umbrella review of the evidence for equine‐assisted interventions

An umbrella review of the evidence for equine‐assisted interventions

Perceptions of animal‐assisted interventions: The influence of attitudes toward companion animals

Current Standards and Practices Within the Therapy Dog Industry: Results of a Representative Survey of United States Therapy Dog Organizations

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