查看更多>>摘要：On the eastern Indonesian island of Flores, the Lio and neighboring ethno-linguistic groups report rare encounters with freshwater turtles and giant land crabs. Though neither species has yet to be scientifically documented for Flores, local descriptions of these animals closely correspond to Cuora amboinensis, a species of box turtle found elsewhere in eastern Indonesia, and the Coconut crab, Birgus latro, the world's largest terrestrial arthropod. At the same time, Lio and other Florenese attribute supernatural powers to the creatures and identify both as embodiments of forest spirits. This paper shows how this dual ontological status is explicable by reference to features of Florenese cosmology and folk ecology, particularly the value islanders place on the opposition of "land" and "sea." According to academic zoology, the turtles and crabs are both terrestrial creatures. But because of their extreme rarity, and because Florenese are normally familiar only with marine turtles and marine and small land or freshwater crabs, they identify all turtles and crabs as, essentially, creatures of the sea. So on those rare occasions when someone sees a freshwater turtle or Coconut crab, typically far inland and often in mountain forests, their phenomenal occurrence is experienced as a radical and frightening contravention of the fundamental cosmological opposition of sea and land. Also facilitated by the species' rarity - locally understood as a quality of being normally invisible or hidden - encounters with both creatures, considered anomalous within the framework of folk zoogeography, are further experienced as dangerous manifestations of supernatural powers identical to those possessed by normally invisible forest spirits. Even so, there is one context in which the rare turtles and crabs are beneficial to humans - just as are the forest spirits themselves, a nice illustration of how otherwise negative supernatural power can contextually be turned to human use. The case thus raises questions concerning the ubiquitous anthropological trichotomy of "animal," "human," and "spirit" while demonstrating how people can conceive of creatures of particular sorts as participating in both categories simultaneously - indeed, in ways comparable to aspects of Christian theology.
查看更多>>摘要：This study examined the perceptions of zoo visitors toward herpetofauna to identify the specific factors that affect their perceptions of these animals. A survey was administered via a QR code posted outside exhibit spaces at three zoos in Florida. A total of 616 survey responses were collected. All participants were over the age of 18 years and a majority of responses (71%) were from women. Findings from this study suggest that demographic factors, such as gender and education level, are most likely to be associated with negative perceptions. In addition, a participant's comfort level with reptiles and amphibians was associated with their perception of the animal being likeable. Findings also demonstrate that there was not a significant difference in the perceptions of the animals between the various orders of herpetofauna. Results from this study support the existing literature stating that there is an association between zoo visitor perceptions and their perceptions of animal welfare as well as their willingness to support conservation efforts. As such, zoos should strive to enhance the connection between their audiences and herpetofauna to help dispel common misperceptions of the animals that may increase discomfort or dislike of the animal. Due to the global decrease in herpetofauna populations around the globe, the effort to combat negative perceptions of these animals is critical to garnishing support for conservation programs.
查看更多>>摘要：The dimensions and effects of the construct "child routine" have been broadly investigated in the field of social psychology. Three studies were conducted to adapt this construct to the field of human-animal relationships and to measure dog routine. The procedure included the initial item generation and item reduction process. Study 1 was conducted to examine the dimensionality, reliability, and validity of the scale. A total of 245 dog owners from Bogota (Colombia) participated in this study. The results revealed four dimensions to measure the construct: (1) daily activities, (2) exercise, (3) discipline, and (4) family time. The reliability and validity of the scale were accepted. Study 2 was conducted to test the reliability of the scale in another country and in a different language (German). This study included an analysis of the nomological validity of the scale by examining the association between dog routine and canine behavioral problems. A total of 154 dog owners from Ingolstadt (Germany) participated in this study. The results supported the reliability and validity of the scale. Additionally, the results showed that a consistent routine is associated with reduced behavioral problems. Study 3 was performed to validate the scale in a third language (English) and to examine the associations between dog routine and behavioral problems, owner satisfaction, and intention to abandon the dog. A total of 182 English-speaking dog owners from Ingolstadt (Germany) participated in this study. The results showed that a consistent routine is associated with reduced behavioral problems, which is associated with higher owner satisfaction and reduced intention to abandon the animal. The implications of these results in the field of human-animal relationships and thoughts on future research are presented.
查看更多>>摘要：Studies that have reported on the loneliness protective effect of pet ownership have recently been called into question owing to methodological drawbacks, including the use of inappropriate scales of measurement for loneliness in pet owner samples. It has also been recently demonstrated that pet interactions may only influence positive, not negative, human affect. In light of these recent advances, the current study aimed to create a new scale focusing on the inverse experience of loneliness: connectedness. An initial 24-item scale was developed using qualitative data collected from our previous study investigating the impact of pet ownership for Australians living alone during a government-enforced lockdown in response to COVID-19. Study 1 included 934 dog and cat owners who self-selected into the online study. Factor analyses revealed two distinct factors, and only items that loaded uniquely on one factor were retained. Study 2 included 526 dog and cat owners who self-selected into the online study, which confirmed the two-factor structure and established validity and reliability of the scale. The result was a 14-item Pet Owner Connectedness Scale (POCS) with two subscales: (i) owner-pet connection, and (ii) connectedness through pet. Hence, we present evidence for a new scale that can be used to measure the positive social states of connectedness that owners may gain from their pets. This may provide a good alternative to more traditional methods such as measuring the buffering effect pets have on negative social states such as loneliness. It may also offer a more robust method to measure the impact of pet interactions on their owners.
查看更多>>摘要：Not all animals are perceived in the same way given the types of crimes of abuse and neglect that are included in the Spanish Criminal Code and the penalties for such crimes. The aim of this study was to assess public opinion (based on sex, age, location, pet ownership) on issues related to animal attributes (based on animals' rights, whether they are considered sentient beings, and the responsibilities of humans toward them), the importance given to penalizing animal abuse, and which authority is considered the most appropriate for resolving such cases. A questionnaire based on a Likert-type scale attitude assessment model was responded to by 1,473 individuals (40.6% male; 59.5% female). In addition to demographic characteristics, seven statements were included to evaluate a person's perception of the capacity of animals to feel pain and to suffer, and the animal's status within the family sphere. Three statements were designed to quantify respondents' perceptions of punishment based on the context in which the abuse occurs. Four statements measured respondents' perceptions of the role of a judge and the role of a mediator in penalizing animal abuse. The last section of the questionnaire included a question on the type of penalty that is appropriate for punishing those convicted of animal abuse. The study confirmed that humans differentiate animals based on how emotionally close to humans is the animal with which we form an attachment. In addition, the responses of women, young persons, urban dwellers, and pet owners were more sensitive to an animal's position in society. Respondents expressed greater agreement with fines rather than prison sentences as a punishment for animal abuse.
Hull, KristenGuarneri-White, MariaJensen-Campbell, Lauri A.
24页
查看更多>>摘要：Despite anecdotal and empirical evidence that pets are beneficial for mental health, little is understood about these relationships in adolescents. This study examined the moderating effect of family dog ownership and perceived dog support on the relationship between social victimization and mental health complaints in adolescents. Adolescents (n = 246; 106 boys, 140 girls) and their parents completed measures of peer victimization and mental health complaints. Additionally, adolescents provided information about the number and type of pets in the home. A total of 131 lived with a dog; 105 chose a dog as their favorite pet. Adolescents who lived with a pet completed a measure of perceived support from their favorite animal. Living with a family dog moderated the influences of social victimization on mental health problems, especially internalizing problems, such that the relationship between victimization and mental health problems was weaker for those living with a dog. Perceived dog support further moderated the relationship between victimization and total problems, anxious/depression, thought problems, attention problems, and aggressive behavior, such that the magnitude of the relationship between victimization and these variables was weaker when more dog support was perceived. Results suggest that perceived support can be derived from a family pet and may buffer against the negative influence of peer victimization.
Abadi, Mahdi Rostami HajiHase, BethanyDell, ColleenJohnston, James D....
12页
查看更多>>摘要：Integrating a therapy dog into physical activity sessions may help children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to increase physical activity and gain-related health benefits. This exploratory intervention assessed the feasibility of integrating a therapy dog into exercise sessions and its efficacy to improve physical activity outcomes in children with ASD. After two familiarization sessions, we randomly assigned 18 children with ASD (mean age = 10.1, SD = 2.5) into two groups (n = 9). We used a crossover design and randomized groups to attend a weekly physical activity session with or without a therapy dog for four weeks. Each group had two sessions with the presence of 1-2 therapy dogs and two sessions without a therapy dog. We assessed feasibility by measuring participant attendance to the crossover sessions and retention in the intervention. We measured efficacy by recording light physical activity, moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), number of bone-impacts, and sedentary time using activity monitors (accelerometers) in each session. We compared physical activity outcomes between the crossover sessions with and without a therapy dog using repeated measures MANOVA. Attendance at the sessions was 92% and the retention rate was 90%. Participants had 13% more minutes of light physical activity (mean difference = 3.5 min; 95% CI: 1.2, 5.8 min) and 22% less sedentary minutes (-2.4; -4.3, -0.1) in the sessions with a therapy dog. MVPA and the number of bone-impacts did not differ between the sessions (p > 0.05). Our results suggest that integrating therapy dogs into physical activity sessions is feasible and it increases light physical activity and decreases sedentary time in children with ASD.
NSTL
Taylor & Francis