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Special Issue "Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion"

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A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Human-Animal Interactions, Animal Behaviour and Emotion".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2021) | Viewed by 25606

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Lucia Francesca Menna
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, Federico II University of Naples, via Mezzocannone, 8-80134 Naples, Italy
Interests: veterinary public health; animal-assisted interventions

Dr. Cristiano Scandurra

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Neuroscience, Reproductive Sciences and Dentistry, University of Naples Federico II, 80138 Napoli, NA, Italy
Interests: clinical psychology; mental health; health promotion; health disparities; gender
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Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) are used in a variety of settings and populations for their cost-effectiveness and positive impacts on wellbeing and psycho-social functioning. AAIs continue to generate a great interest in scientific communities and clinical environments, highlighting the strong significance of the interactions and bonds between animals and human beings. However, scholars use different methods and definitions, and it is hard to find common working methods. Therefore, as researchers, we need to open an international and interdisciplinary discussion about this matter, with a particular focus on the different working methods used worldwide which also include the choice of the species and the individual animals.

This Special Issue is open to any subject area related to recent advances in the three main AAIs’ souls: Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Animal Assisted Activities (AAA), and Animal Assisted Education (AAE).

Prof. Lucia Francesca Menna
Prof. Cristiano Scandurra
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAIs) working methods
Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) working methods
Animal Assisted Activities (AAA) working methods
Animal Assisted Education (AAE) working methods
Choice of animal species
Choice of animal individual
Role of veterinarians
Role of psychologists
Role of health professionals
Veterinarian sanitary protocols
AAIs and public health
Relationships between health professionals and animals
AAIs effectiveness
AAIs evaluation methods

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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Open AccessArticle

An Animal-Assisted Education Intervention with Dogs to Promote Emotion Comprehension in Primary School Children—The Federico II Model of Healthcare Zooanthropology

Lucia Francesca Menna

and

Vincenzo Bochicchio

Animals 2021, 11(6), 1504; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11061504 - 22 May 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2736

Abstract

Emotion comprehension (EC) is a crucial competence for children, as it determines the quality of peer interactions. This study assessed the efficacy of an animal-assisted education (AAE) intervention with dogs based on the Federico II Model of Healthcare Zooanthropology (FMHZ) to promote EC in a group of primary school children. One hundred and four children (48 females) aged 6–7 years took part in the study, of whom 63 participated in the AAE intervention (i.e., experimental group) and 41 did not (i.e., control group). The intervention was deployed in a school setting through a group format and consisted of five bimonthly sessions. EC was assessed pre- and post-intervention, and at a 3-month follow-up. Student’s t-test and mixed-model ANOVA were performed to analyze the effect of the intervention on EC. EC significantly improved in children of the experimental group compared to the control group. Significant time effects from pre- to post-intervention, post-intervention to follow-up, and pre-intervention to follow-up assessment were found in the experimental group only. AAE based on FMHZ was effective in improving EC in children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

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Open AccessArticle

Non-Parametric Evaluation Methods of the Brain Activity of a Bottlenose Dolphin during an Assisted Therapy

Jesús Jaime Moreno Escobar

Oswaldo Morales Matamoros

Erika Yolanda Aguilar del Villar

Ricardo Tejeida Padilla

Ixchel Lina Reyes

Brenda Espinoza Zambrano

Brandon David Luna Gómez

and

Víctor Hugo Calderón Morfín

Animals 2021, 11(2), 417; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11020417 - 06 Feb 2021

Viewed by 1631

Abstract

Dolphin-Assisted Therapies (DAT) are alternative therapies aimed to reduce anxiety levels, stress relief and physical benefits. This paper is focused on measuring and analyzing dolphins brain activity when DAT is taking place in order to identify if there is any differences in female dolphin’s neuronal signal when it is interacting with control or intervention subjects, performing our research in Delfiniti, Ixtapa, Mexico facilities. We designed a wireless and portable electroencephalographic single-channel signal capture sensor to acquire and monitor the brain activity of a female bottle-nose dolphin. This EEG sensor was able to show that dolphin activity at rest is characterized by high spectral power at slow-frequencies bands. When the dolphin participated in DAT, a 23.53% increment in the 12–30 Hz frequency band was observed, but this only occurred for patients with some disease or disorder, given that 0.5–4 Hz band keeps it at 17.91% when there is a control patient. Regarding the fractal or Self-Affine Analysis, we found for all samples studied that at the beginning the dolphin’s brain activity behaved as a self-affine fractal described by a power-law until the fluctuations of voltage reached the crossovers, and after the crossovers these fluctuations left this scaling behavior. Hence, our findings validate the hypothesis that the participation in a DAT of a Patient with a certain disease or disorder modifies the usual behavior of a female bottle-nose dolphin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

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Open AccessArticle

Assessing the Outcomes of an Animal-Assisted Intervention in a Paediatric Day Hospital: Perceptions of Children and Parents

Adriana Ávila-Álvarez

Jerónimo Pardo-Vázquez

Iván De-Rosende-Celeiro

Rita Jácome-Feijoo

and

Gabriel Torres-Tobío

Animals 2020, 10(10), 1788; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10101788 - 01 Oct 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2219

Abstract

There is a growing interest in the use of animal-assisted intervention (AAI) as a non-pharmacological strategy to improve child welfare in hospitals. However, the efficacy of implementation of programmes based on activities with dogs in a paediatric day hospital is not known. An intra-subject quasi-experimental longitudinal design was used for the purpose of assessing the feasibility of such an intervention, as well as exploring the perceptions of its outcomes by children and parents/guardians. A total of 55 children in outpatient care at a paediatric day hospital participated in an AAI session. The application of this intervention was feasible. Self-assessment by the paediatric patients revealed a statistically significant improvement in their emotional state after the session, which was large in size. Parents confirmed this improvement in their child, perceiving significant changes in their mood, which were large in size. This study suggests that AAI is an effective approach when it comes to promoting the emotional welfare of children during their stay in hospital care environments. Participating in recreational occupations with dogs could contribute in a relevant and efficient way to the development of significant and gratifying experiences and to a more positive perception of healthcare centres on the part of children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

Open AccessArticle

Animal-Assisted Therapy as a Non-Pharmacological Approach in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Retrospective Study

and

Lucia Francesca Menna

Animals 2020, 10(7), 1142; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10071142 - 06 Jul 2020

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4229

Abstract

Recently, many efforts have been made to assess the effectiveness of non-pharmacological therapies as an alternative or supportive option to conventional approaches. Specifically, animal-assisted therapy (AAT) has recently raised a great interest and large research efforts. This work represents a retrospective study carried out over seven years (from 2012 to 2019) in 127 patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease. The patients were divided into three groups: an experimental group that received AAT interventions adapted to the formal reality orientation therapy (ROT), a group receiving a formal ROT, and a control group that did not perform any of the previous therapies. All sessions, for all patient groups, were held weekly for a total period of six months. The evaluation of cognitive function was performed through the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), while the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) assessed the depressive state. Test administration to all patients was performed before the start of the first session (T₀) and after the last session (T₁). The results obtained showed an improvement in the values in the GDS and MMSE tests. The variations between the average MMSE values between T₁ and T₀ were 0.94 ± 0.9 (SD), 0.15 ± 0.62, and −0.42 ± 0.45 in the AAT group, ROT group, and control (CTRL) group, respectively. The variations between the average GDS values between T₁ and T₀ were −1.12 ± 1.17 (SD), −0.42 ± 1.21, and 0.12 ± 0.66 in the AAT group, ROT group, and CTRL group, respectively. Based on our findings, we can therefore affirm how the study carried out confirms the potential of AAT performed by Federico II Model of Healthcare Zooanthropology, and particularly its efficacy in the treatment of cognitive deficits deriving from Alzheimer’s disease. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

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Open AccessArticle

Best Practice Standards in Animal-Assisted Interventions: How the LEAD Risk Assessment Tool Can Help

Victoria L. Brelsford

Mirena Dimolareva

Nancy R. Gee

and

Kerstin Meints

Animals 2020, 10(6), 974; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10060974 - 03 Jun 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 6735

Abstract

Animal-assisted interventions (AAI) in educational and other settings have steadily increased over the last fifty years and a steep rise in AAI has been observed in many countries and settings in recent years. Surprisingly, while different providers and organisations provide a range of guidelines, no unified, standardised guidelines or risk assessment tools for AAI exist. This means that in practice AAI takes place in an unregulated manner and without a gold standard of best practice. In addition, knowledge of which interventions are effective is still scarce and the mechanisms of successful interventions are not yet fully understood. This is partly due to AAI being a relatively new research field and standards of research and practice have often lacked rigour in the past. Furthermore, knowledge and experience of providers undertaking interventions varies greatly as there is no standardised training either. We address the striking lack of standardised guidelines and procedures. In all AAI, high importance should be placed on safety and welfare of all involved. Children and other AAI participants, staff and animals should be given equal consideration when assessing risks and welfare needs. To ensure safe AAI worldwide, we provide urgently needed guidelines on best practice in relation to risk assessment, safeguarding and animal welfare priorities. The guidelines were developed for a large-scale longitudinal, randomised controlled trial AAI project and are relevant to AAIs within educational and other settings. We also provide the first set of comprehensive risk assessment and animal welfare tools to achieve consistent welfare and safety standards for best practice across educational and other settings around the world. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

Review

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Open AccessReview

Methodological and Terminological Issues in Animal-Assisted Interventions: An Umbrella Review of Systematic Reviews

Antonio Santaniello

Francesca Dicé

Roberta Claudia Carratú

Alessia Amato

Alessandro Fioretti

and

Lucia Francesca Menna

Animals 2020, 10(5), 759; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10050759 - 27 Apr 2020

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 4006

Abstract

Recently, animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), which are defined as psychological, educational, and rehabilitation support activities, have become widespread in different contexts. For many years, they have been a subject of interest in the international scientific community and are at the center of an important discussion regarding their effectiveness and the most appropriate practices for their realization. We carried out an umbrella review (UR) of systematic reviews (SRs), created for the purpose of exploring the literature and aimed at deepening the terminological and methodological aspects of AAIs. It is created by exploring the online databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library. The SRs present in the high-impact indexed search engines Web of Sciences and Scopus are selected. After screening, we selected 15 SRs that met the inclusion criteria. All papers complained of the poor quality of AAIs; some considered articles containing interventions that did not always correspond to the terminology they have explored and whose operating practices were not always comparable. This stresses the need for the development and consequent diffusion of not only operational protocols, but also research protocols which provide for the homogeneous use of universally recognized terminologies, thus facilitating the study, deepening, and comparison between the numerous experiences described. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

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Other

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Open AccessOpinion

Current Status of Animal-Assisted Interventions in Scientific Literature: A Critical Comment on Their Internal Validity

Javier López-Cepero

Animals 2020, 10(6), 985; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10060985 - 05 Jun 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3221

Abstract

Many meta-analyses and systematic reviews have tried to assess the efficacy of animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), reaching inconsistent conclusions. The present work posits a critical exploration of the current literature, using some recent meta-analyses to exemplify the presence of unattended threats. The present comment illustrates that the field (1) comprehends inconsistencies regarding the terms and definitions of AAIs; (2) pays more attention to the characteristics of the animals than to the action mechanisms of AAIs; (3) does not provide a clear connection between anthrozoology (how humans and non-human animals interact in communities), benefits of the human–animal interaction (HAI), and the design of AAIs; and (4) implicitly reinforces these phenomena through research designs. Thus, some conclusions extracted from these meta-analyses need further discussion. Increasing the internal validity of AAIs in empirical studies is an urgent task, which can be addressed by (1) developing a better understanding of how anthrozoology, the HAI, and AAIs relate to each other; (2) highlighting the mechanisms that explain the results in an empirical and specific way; and (3) changing the design of interventions, adopting a component-centered approach, and focusing on the incremental efficacy and efficiency of AAI programs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Working Methods in the Field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), Activities (AAA), and Education (AAE): An Open Discussion)

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