Johnston, Cara;
Van Huyssteen, Samantha;
Grajfoner, Dasha;
Sinclair, James Bruce;
(2022)
Exploring the effect of a therapy dog in a group for young people experiencing anxiety.
Mental Health Practice
10.7748/mhp.2022.e1629.
(In press).
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Abstract
Research suggests that the inclusion of dogs in the delivery of psychotherapy for adolescents may have a positive effect on outcomes. This article details an evaluation that explored the effect of introducing a dog to cognitive behavioural therapy-based anxiety management groups for young people aged between 11 years and 14 years. A total of 35 young people attended these groups, which ran either with or without a dog present. The results suggest that the presence of a therapy dog significantly reduced young people’s anxiety ratings in five of the six sessions and contributed to a higher discharge rate after completing the group therapy (44% in the groups with the dog versus 28% in the groups without the dog). Qualitative feedback indicates that the presence of a therapy dog improved the young people’s experiences by enabling them to feel increasingly relaxed and confident in the group. These findings suggest that a therapy dog can enhance young people’s experiences in group therapy, particularly in the early stages, and increase discharge rates.
Type: | Article |
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Title: | Exploring the effect of a therapy dog in a group for young people experiencing anxiety |
Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
DOI: | 10.7748/mhp.2022.e1629 |
Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.7748/mhp.2022.e1629 |
Language: | English |
Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
Keywords: | adolescents, anxiety, child and adolescent mental health, child health, mental health, mental health therapies, patient engagement, patients, professional, psychological interventions |
URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10186192 |
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