The effect of an animal-assisted visitation programme on children with intellectual disabilities: a randomised controlled study

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Intellectual disability is a developmental disorder which affects intellectual and adaptive functioning within a social, practical and conceptual domain. This is a lifelong disorder for which no cure exists. Intellectual disability is normally caused by trauma or genetic predispositions. In South Africa this disorder affects approximately 0.64 per 1000 to 29.1 per 1000 children. There are many treatment plans which are used for intellectual disabilities. Animal-assisted intervention is one such plan. With animal-assisted intervention (AAI) certified animals and their owners go to facilities such as hospitals and schools where patients or residents get the opportunity to interact with the animals under the owners' supervision. AAI has been proven to help reduce anxiety and pain and to encourage self-esteem and motivation in children.The aim of the current study was to empirically study the effect of an AAI on the behaviour of children with intellectual disabilities. The present study made use of a randomised pretest-posttest control group design.The sample of the current study consisted of 47 children enrolled at a primary school for children with special needs in Cape Town, South Africa. The children were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 23) and a control group (n = 24). The experimental group was subjected to a 10-week intervention programme during which four registered dogs from Pets as Therapy visited the children once a week for 40 minutes. The experimental group had the opportunity to talk to, brush, give snacks and pet the dogs. During this time the control group continued with normal everyday school activities.Two questionnaires, namely the Child Behaviour Checklist (teacher's form) and the Measurement of Pet Inventory (MOPI) were handed to the teachers to complete for all 47 children before (pretest) and after (posttest) the intervention. A p-value of .05 or smaller was used to indicate the significance of the results. Non-significant results were found on the Child Behaviour Checklist (teacher's form) and the MOPI in the current study. However, the current study recommends that future studies continue to empirically study the effect that AAI can have on children with ID and various other disabilities.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University