A group of researchers from the King Juan Carlos University (URJC) in Madrid and the Jordi Gol University Institute for Research in Primary Care has carried out a study that concludes that dog-assisted therapy "is associated with improvements in the self-efficacy of adolescents admitted" to specific psychiatric units for this age group.
The work, promoted by the URJC's Office of Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) and the Catalan institution, has also detected an improvement in self-esteem in these hospitalized minors. For this purpose, a clinical trial "with two selected groups from national reference hospital centers" was designed.
The participating hospitals were the Niño Jesús University Children's Hospital in Madrid, the Mataró Hospital (Barcelona), and the Santa María University Hospital in Lleida. "The first group received usual therapy, while the second also participated in sessions with a therapeutic dog," detail the authors, among them the psychologist and collaborating professor of the URJC's AAI Office, Luis Lucio Lobato Rincón.
"The specific objectives were to evaluate the effects of animal-assisted therapy on self-esteem and self-efficacy and to assess the perception and satisfaction of participants and professionals with the intervention," said Lobato Rincón. To assess the results, the team measured self-efficacy and anxiety "before and after the sessions using validated questionnaires, such as the 'Self-Efficacy Scale' and the 'State-Trait Anxiety Inventory'."
Study Results and Professional Opinion
The findings, published in the journal 'BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies', show, according to the authors, that dog-assisted therapy "improved the self-efficacy of adolescents compared to the control group." "The intervention was valued very positively by professionals, who highlighted a notable increase in patients' motivation, attitude, and therapeutic adherence," they emphasized.
"Dog-assisted therapy is seen as a 'friendly' intervention, focused on the motivation of pediatric and adolescent patients in psychiatric treatments, an area that is often accompanied by stigmas and complex family situations," the researchers highlight. Given these results, Lobato Rincón encourages "advancing in studies of this type that also analyze long-term effects."