PETS IN OUR RELATIONAL WORLD PART I: Social & Community Wellbeing

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HIGHLIGHTS

• Owning any pet can have a significant role in reducing depression, anxiety, and stress.

• The physical and psychological benefits in the form of a pet have genuine physiological underpinnings and is thought to affect both sympathetic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal reactivity.

• Even short-term exposure to a novel dog in an unfamiliar or anxiety provoking setting can lower cortisol and heart rate levels.

• Pet ownership may be a protective factor for individual and community wellbeing as it is thought to be a catalyst for social interaction from incidental social interaction to making new friends.

• Pets may facilitate social capital; higher rates of social capital are associated with pet ownership versus no pet ownership status.

• Even non pet owners benefit as mere observation of neighbors walking dogs and interacting is associated with reports of greater sense of community.

• Studies generally support the belief that dogs at the workplace can have a positive influence on individual and collective well-being of organizational members.

• The SCRS is unique in its inclusion of pet relationships as an important component in knowing how the client perceives his/her relational world.

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When my husband and I were in our late 30's, we and our 2-year-old dog, Molly, moved to a recently developed suburb outside of Appleton, Wisconsin. Unlike my husband and me who relocated from outside the area and were still working, most of its residents were from the general vicinity and were older and retired. West Haven was a long, quiet city block of at least a tenth of a mile. All but one newly built home, our home, had immaculately manicured lawns and magazine-ready curb appeal porches. We were busy, we told ourselves. In reality we did not yet appreciate the interesting and sometimes complex dynamics between neighbors; peer pressure is alive and well among neighbors our real estate agent told us. My husband, growing weary of and a tad anxious over the neighbors' curt smiles and stiff waves, replaced the weeds in the front with sod. And still, we felt less than welcome in our new home.

Until the day Molly jumped out of our parked Jeep and, in high spirits, ran from our garage and down the city block. Try as I might to keep up with her, she was soon out of sight. I slowed to a brisk walk, calling her name and bribing her with "treat treat for Molly." At the third house, on a wicker chair, sat a frail, older gentleman, Mr. Barns, who was chuckling. And then I saw her: a furry black wiggle between the gentleman's porch rail slats. Walking up to the foot of the porch my many apologies were affectionately rejected with a gruff but soft "she just wants to visit. What a good girl."

And visit she did. For most of the days of the 7 years we lived in that neighborhood, Molly would trot off every morning and sometimes in the evening, stopping at each of the four houses on that long city block. She would lay at the feet of the woman who completed the local papers' crossword puzzle on her brightly decorated porch stoop; she spent many evenings enjoying belly rubs by the couple that had just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary; and she indulged in countless dog treats while watching a gifted potter who had transformed her garage into a studio. Molly even attended the funeral of Mr. Barnes. And despite the occasional busy summers that sprung more dandelions than grass in our backyard, these once seemingly cold and critical residents worked with me on local dog park improvements, invited us to potlucks, and shared their lifetime of homeownership wisdom. Molly created the relationships that eventually gave my husband and I a sense of belonging: she gave us a neighborhood.

AN EMERGING DISCIPLINE:

Companion animals are increasingly being recognized by society as beneficial to our health and considered by many owners as authentic and affectional family members. There are over a billion pets in homes across the globe. Nearly 87 million homes in the United States own a pet, and nearly all of US pet owners describe their pets as family members, with over half stating their pets are on in equal standing with the humans in the household. The study of the human–animal bond is a true scientific “animal frontier,” and is now recognized as a scientific discipline in and of itself. This evident when reading contemporary psychology news bites, pet and animal publications, veterinarian office posters, and wellness news in general: the combination of pet ownership and social support appears to mediate depression, anxiety, and stress. And though dog ownership affords the most health benefits, having any pet is associated with better emotional and physical wellbeing than no pet ownership.

PHYSICAL & EMOTIONAL WELLBEING:

Pets appear to ameliorate loneliness and isolation in older adults; are therapeutically relevant in treating PTSD in veterans; increase children's levels of empathy, social skills, and self esteem; increase oxytocin levels in pet attached humans and human-attached cats and dogs; reduce pain levels and anxiety in hospitalized patients; protect against cardiovascular disease; and pet ownership is even thought to significantly improve cognitive and affective functioning in autistic individuals. These physical and psychological benefits in the form of a pet have genuine physiological underpinnings and is thought to affect both sympathetic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal reactivity. For example, dog walking activates GABAergic nerves in the brain (a calming effect) while suppressing noradrenergic nerve activity ('fight or flight") above and beyond walking without a dog. Even short-term exposure to a novel dog in an unfamiliar or anxiety provoking setting can lower cortisol and heart rate levels.

“The whole glorious history of animals with people is about joy and connection. It’s about loving this creature and letting this creature love you.” – Jon Katz (American journalist, author, and photographer.)

The last couple of decades have seen over 2 dozen empirical studies on the benefits of dog walking, alone. Adults who often walk a dog are more likely than those who do not dog walk to meet the standard exercise recommendation of U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources. A 2020 study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, found dog walking was beneficial to both the pet owner and the pet. Findings suggest that complex social interactions with the “significant other” of a pet can be strong motivators for healthy behavior. Furthermore, when the individuals observed their dogs enjoying the walking experience, reports of happiness and satisfaction increased. This further motivated the individuals to continue dog walking in their daily routine.

PETS & COMMUNITY WELLBEING:

Recent research is adding strength to claims that pet ownership is a valuable and positive feature in community and neighborhood life. Most dog owners eventually have a story to share, maybe not as dramatic as mine with Molly, but a story nevertheless about their dogs as facilitators of social interaction such as talking with strangers, making acquaintances with neighbors, perhaps even instigating friendships and other social network opportunities.

But it appears that pet ownership within communities is more than mere conversation starters. Dr Lisa Wood of the University of Western Australia led research published in the journal of Social Science & Medicine-Population Health where over 2,500 pet and non-pet owners were measured on several aspects of social capital including helpfulness, friendliness, trust, and civic engagement. Consistent with the researchers' hypothesis, owning a pet was associated with higher social capital compared with not owning a pet at all. Stronger social connections within a community afford greater social capital. In the study, subjects were more likely to report social benefits including helpfulness, friendliness and trust between neighbors.

Other research has found that social capital and residents' sense of felt community are not restricted to dog ownership exclusively. Owning a cat, for example, can increase social interaction and contribute to a felt sense of community. Moreover, researchers report a "halo effect" for non pet owners. Neighborhood residents and park visitors that merely watch dog-human interactions, also report a greater sense of community than those who do not observe such interactions.

"Pet owners reported stronger neighborhood social connections and were consistently more likely to report social benefits such as helpfulness, friendliness and trust between neighbors."

PETS IN THE WORKPLACE:

Akin to residential neighborhoods, work environments are typically shared geographical spaces structured around individual and group activities, some more traditional than others, some affording greater opportunities to physically connect with coworkers and peers, others offering greater pockets of privacy or solitude. Like neighborhoods, the wellbeing of individual employees and their reciprocal relationships are the backbone of the work environment. Pet-friendly work policies are becoming more commonplace as employers, human services personnel, employer sponsored health insurance companies, occupational therapists, and job coaches are seeking ways to increase employee wellbeing amid an ever-increasing competitive and stressful work environment.

Barker (2005), from the Virginia Commonwealth University, demonstrated multiple measures of work satisfaction increase when work environments permit employees to bring their pets to work. In 2019, Hall & Mills found significantly higher employee reports of work engagement and reduced intentions to leave their current job due to stress and low morale. One of the more comprehensive studies to-date on workplaces with pet friendly policies (Wagner & Cunha, 2021) revealed positive correlations between pets in the work environment and employee positivity, stress release, and improved communication. Furthermore, the study's results resonate with findings mentioned earlier about increased neighborhood social capital when pets are prominent.

Social cohesion, or strong relationships that facilitate a sense of community, was observed in the 2021 study such that employees developed stronger positive working relationships and increased commitment to the each other and the company. And, like dog walking is beneficial even to neighborhood residents that do not own dogs, employees without pets derived similar social cohesion benefits on the job which was thought to be the result of assisting their colleagues with dog-care behaviors such as potty breaks, bringing in dog treats, and experiences of reciprocal affection between employee and dog.

CONCLUSION:

Pet ownership brings health and social benefits and there is a growing call for the societal impact of pets to be taken seriously. When people come together to experience the human-animal bond, they are "reinvigorated;" their stress reduced, their mood elevated, their social connectedness and belonging increased. The Self Centric Relational System (SCRS) recognizes the importance of all relationships to an individual's wellbeing and, unlike similar relational assessment tools, the SCRS actively encourages client and helper to explore any pet relational influences and dynamics as experienced by the client.

Meaning, purpose, affection, authenticity, and our sense of "okayness" in the face of loss and struggle are found and expressed over and over within our relationships, including those we have with our pets. There is likely not a pet owner out there who does not believe that his or her relationship with his pet is anything short of meaningful, authentic, affectionate, reciprocated, and supportive. Pets can be a beautiful family member, but they also demand time, money, sacrifice, at times can be burdensome, and always a heartache and a loss to endure with their eventual passing. So, too, they should be incorporated into the helper's assessment of her clients. Its impact may reach well beyond the therapy office and beyond the client's home or work environment to the shaping and caring for the larger communities we all inhabit.

REFERENCES:

Barker, Randolph & Knisely, Janet & Barker, Sandra & Cobb, Rachel & Schubert, Christine. (2012). Preliminary investigation of employee's dog presence on stress and organizational perceptions. International Journal of Workplace Health Management. 5. 15-30. 10.1108/17538351211215366.

Bosch Mvan den Bird W. Oxford Textbook of Nature and Public Health : The Role of Nature in Improving the Health of a Population. First ed. Chapter 4.2: The Human Animal Bond. Oxford United Kingdom: Oxford University Press; 2018.

Brown, Anna. Pew Research Center. About half of U.S. pet owners say their pes are as much a part of the their family as a human member. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/07/07/about-half-us-of-pet-owners-say-their-pets-are-as-much-a-part-of-their-family-as-a-human-member/ Accessed 10/2023.

Gee NR, Rodriguez KE, Fine AH, Trammell JP. Dogs Supporting Human Health and Well-Being: A Biopsychosocial Approach. Front Vet Sci. 2021;8:630465. Published 2021 Mar 30. doi:10.3389/fvets.2021.630465

Hall SS, Mills DS. Taking Dogs Into the Office: A Novel Strategy for Promoting Work Engagement, Commitment and Quality of Life. Front Vet Sci. 2019;6:138. Published 2019 May 7. doi:10.3389/fvets.2019.00138

Polheber JP, Matchock RL. The presence of a dog attenuates cortisol and heart rate in the Trier Social Stress Test compared to human friends. J Behav Med. 2014;37(5):860-867. doi:10.1007/s10865-013-9546-1

Siegel, J. M. (1990). Stressful life events and use of physician services among the elderly: The moderating role of pet ownership. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58(6), 1081–1086. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.58.6.1081

Taylor, Nik & Signal, Tania. (2005). Empathy and attitudes to animals. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals. 18. 18-27. 10.2752/089279305785594342.

Wagner E, Pina E Cunha M. Dogs at the Workplace: A Multiple Case Study. Animals (Basel). 2021;11(1):89. Published 2021 Jan 5. doi:10.3390/ani11010089

Wood L, Martin K, Christian H, et al. The pet factor--companion animals as a conduit for getting to know people, friendship formation and social support. PLoS One. 2015;10(4):e0122085. Published 2015 Apr 29. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0122085

Wood L, Martin K, Christian H, et al. Social capital and pet ownership - A tale of four cities. SSM Popul Health. 2017;3:442-447. Published 2017 May 5. doi:10.1016/j.ssmph.2017.05.002