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Fri 5 Aug, 2011 09:40 am
Yes, having a dog or a cat really is good for you
By Rob Stein - Washington Post
Lots of research has indicated that having a dog or a cat can help people live happier, healthier lives. But it’s been unclear whether there really is a cause-and-effect relationship between pet ownership and better physical and mental health. Now, new research indicates that the benefits of having a canine or feline companion are real and broad.
A team of psychologists from Miami University and St. Louis University conducted a series of studies aimed at trying to tease out the benefits of pet ownership.
“Although there is correlational evidence that pets may help individuals facing significant life stressors, little is known about the well-being benefits of patterns for everyday people,” they wrote in a paper published online this week by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
In the first part of the research, 217 people answered detailed questionnaires online designed to determine whether pet owners tend to be different from people who do not own pets. The survey assessed variables such as depression, loneliness, self-esteem, illness, activity level and their relationships with other people. The researchers found that, in fact, there were lots of differences, with pet owners faring much better overall. For example, pet owners tended to be less lonely, have higher self-esteem, get more exercise, be more extroverted and were less fearful about getting close to other people.
In the second part of the research, the researchers studied 56 dog owners. In addition to filling out the same questionnaire used in the first part of the study, the researchers also gathered detailed information about how they related to their dogs, and to other people. The owners tended to get the most benefit from having a canine companion when their dogs “complemented rather than competed” with humans in their lives, the researchers found.
“In fact ... we repeatedly observed evidence that people who enjoyed greater benefits from their pets also were closer to other important people in their lives and received more support from them, not less,” the researchers wrote.
Dogs that were less fearful, more active and less aggressive toward people and other animals seemed to fulfill their owners’ needs the best, the researchers found.
In the last experiment, the researchers brought 97 undergraduates into the laboratory and asked them to write about a time when they felt socially excluded and then write about a favorite pet or a favorite friend. Writing about pets was just as effective as writing about a friend in terms of minimizing feelings of rejection, the researchers found.
“In summary, pets can serve as important sources of social support, providing many positive psychological and physical benefits for their owners,” the researchers wrote.
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
Immagine, somebody got paid by someone else to "discover" that.
I wonder if the research sponsor was ALPO
@farmerman,
Perhaps it was promoted by groups trying to find homes for animals.
BBB
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
That too. Im sticking woth ALPO, sounds funnier
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
The postive health benefits of pet ownership have been known for some time.
http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/features/health-benefits-of-pets
What could be bad about having some unconditional love?
I've noticed a trend in advertising to refer to "pet parents" rather than pet owners, reflecting just how strong our social bonds are with our furry friends.
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
I hope it is good for them too...
@Fido,
Well if they were previously homeless, especially, it could be
excellent for them!
A win/win situation all round!
@farmerman,
Quote:I wonder if the research sponsor was ALPO
What is ALPO, farmer?
I Googled & this is what I received in response:
http://alpo-astronomy.org/
I have a feeling this is not what you referred to.
@msolga,
Alpo is a dog food manufacturer/brand.
@msolga,
ALPO is a pet food and is a brand that is favored by many poor people in the US .
@msolga,
Its tasy and meaty, with very few of the Naughty Bits
Alpo makes some little square biscuits, in addition to the regular dog food they sell. My dog starts the day with a couple of them. She absolutely will not eat Milkbone or other biscuits when we try to substitute.
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
What does the study say about having a monkey as a pet? Or small other odd animal?
@edgarblythe,
Edgar, your dog has discerning tastes then. Milkbones are for less sophisticated dogs.
@tsarstepan,
tsarstepan wrote:
Edgar, your dog has discerning tastes then. Milkbones are for less sophisticated dogs.
Lay them on me... I only hang with less than sophisticated dogs...
@edgarblythe,
My doggies only snack on Mother Hubbards "Couch potato" dog biscuits. We try to keep them lean and , if not mean, at least disagreeable.
What about tortoises? LOL oh wait, I also have two cats and two dogs.
The "pet" might not even need to be real in order to have a positive effect.
Quote:Paro the Robotic Seal Could Diminish Dementia
First long-term study seeks to prove the benefits of a cybernetic pet
By Erico Guizzo
May 2009
Paro is a robotic baby seal. It may look like a toy, but it’s quickly attracting the serious attention of rehabilitation researchers. In Japan, more than 1000 units have been sold to care providers in nursing homes and hospitals, as well as to consumers who want a robotic companion. Short-term experiments in Japan and the United States show that Paro can have positive effects on the mental health of some elderly people. Now long-term studies are under way in Europe. The results could lead to specialized versions of Paro to help specific groups of people, such as elderly individuals suffering from dementia or children with autism.
It’s easy to see Paro’s attraction. It squeals, blinks, moves its head and paddles, and squeals some more. Oh, and it loves to be petted. But Paro—invented by Takanori Shibata, a researcher at Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST)—is also smart. Artificial intelligence software changes the robot’s behavior based on a host of sensors that monitor sound, light, temperature, and touch. Paro learns to respond to words its owner users frequently. And if it’s not getting much petting time, it will cry.
Intrigued by these capabilities, researchers at the Danish Technological Institute’s Centre for Robot Technology began the first long-term study of Paro’s potential in elderly care. The researchers distributed 30 units to residents of nursing homes with various levels of senile dementia. The study will continue for several years, says Lone Gaedt, the project’s leader, but it’s already evident that Paro not only makes patients feel better but can also help them communicate better with others, including caregivers.
”You see people who had lost language pronouncing words or talking to Paro as if it was a pet they had in the past,” she says. ”You even see very debilitated people who can’t take care of themselves but want to take care of Paro.” But, Gaedt adds, the little robot is just one of many tools that should be used and that some people don’t have the mental resources the robot requires—or they just lose interest.
In the United States, where Paro will be commercially available sometime this year—at a cost of about US $6000 each—small trials are in progress at institutions like Vinson Hall, a retirement community in McLean, Va. Marcia Twomey, director of development, says that residents become very animated by petting and talking to Paro, much as they would with a real pet, but with the advantage that the robot lets users engage with it as long as they like and won’t walk away.
”Paro has made many friends here,” she says. ”It’s a very magnificent piece of robotics.”
AIST’s Shibata has performed his own tests with Paro users. He’s watched hundreds of hours of recordings of people interacting with the robot, and he’s also measured hormones linked to stress and analyzed brain activity. He says Paro produces a positive psychological and physiological effect on people. ”But so far Paro is more like a general-purpose therapeutic tool,” he says. ”To improve the therapeutic effect, we need to create specialized versions.”
The Denmark study and tests at places like Vinson Hall are helping Shibata understand how different types of users respond to the robot. His goal now is to fine-tune Paro’s behavior—and create new behavior—to enhance these therapeutic effects. For example, he’d like to make a version of Paro that would stimulate more verbal communication in demented patients who are losing their language skills. Another version would try to elicit more interaction between autistic people and their caregivers.
It will take several years to develop these new versions, Shibata says. But after working on Paro for nearly two decades, the researcher says he’s not tired of his, well, pet project. He enjoys Paro’s company, but he keeps the robots at the lab and has none at home. ”I have one in my car,” he says, ”just in case I need to show it to someone.”
http://spectrum.ieee.org/robotics/home-robots/paro-the-robotic-seal-could-diminish-dementia/0
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