ABSTRACT

This study explored children’s perceptions of a canine-assisted social-emotional learning program developed within the framework of a canine therapy program at a mid-sized Canadian university. Data collection made use of interviews, field notes, and observations. Children (N = 8, 5 – 11 years) from an after-school program participated in a six-week intervention after which participants were interviewed about their experiences in the program, their learning of social and emotional competencies, and the role of the therapy dogs in facilitating their socioemotional development. Using conventional content analysis, salient themes reflecting participants’ experiences were identified. A within-case analysis was conducted followed by a cross-case analysis to identify what participants collectively saw as important. Salient themes to emerge through cross-case analysis were: 1) the dogs were meaningful and essential to the program, 2) it was an enjoyable and positive experience, and 3) participants reported evidence of social-emotional learnings. Evidence from this study suggests that the therapy dogs might have provided behavioral and emotional support. Findings suggest that integrating therapy dogs into social and emotional learning initiatives can provide unique advantages and improve children’s engagement and learning of social and emotional skills. Findings are discussed within the context of human-animal interactions and social and emotional education.

摘要

本研究探讨了儿童对在加拿大中型大学的犬科治疗计划框架内开发的犬科辅助社会情感学习计划的看法。数据收集利用了访谈、实地记录和观察。儿童（N= 8, 5 – 11 岁）来自一个课后项目参加了为期六周的干预，之后参与者接受了关于他们在项目中的经历、他们对社交和情感能力的学习以及治疗犬在促进他们的社会情感发展。使用传统的内容分析，确定了反映参与者经历的突出主题。进行案例内分析，然后进行跨案例分析，以确定参与者共同认为重要的内容。通过跨案例分析出现的显着主题是：1）狗对项目有意义且必不可少，2）这是一次愉快而积极的体验，3）参与者报告了社会情感学习的证据。这项研究的证据表明，治疗犬可能提供了行为和情感支持。研究结果表明，将治疗犬融入社交和情感学习计划可以提供独特的优势，并提高儿童的参与度以及社交和情感技能的学习。在人与动物的互动以及社会和情感教育的背景下讨论了调查结果。