Attachment to companion animals and loneliness in Australian adolescents

Abstract

Objective: Loneliness can have detrimental consequences for adolescent mental health and wellbeing. Previous, international, investigations of attachment to companion animals have reported positive effects of such bonds on adolescent loneliness. The current study aimed to determine the relationship between companion animal attachment and loneliness among Australian adolescents. Method: A geographically diverse sample of Australian adolescents (n = 283) was gathered via an online survey. Participants responded to demographic and animal ownership variables as well as measures of companion animal attachment, social support and loneliness. Results: A small, negative but nonsignificant relationship between companion animal attachment and loneliness was found suggesting that, as adolescents' attachment scores rose, loneliness scores tended to decrease. Further analyses revealed an unexpected moderating effect of ownership level on the relationship between companion animal attachment and loneliness. While a significant negative relationship between companion animal attachment and loneliness was observed for adolescents with a family pet, a subset of primary owners with extreme levels of attachment, heightened loneliness and lower social support scores was noted. Conclusion: For many adolescents having a family or shared pet may provide a positive influence on loneliness levels. However, parallels with literature presenting adverse effects of extreme attachment to companion animals within older populations suggest that for some adolescents the relationship is more complex.

The Moderating Effect of Comfort from Companion Animals and Social Support on the Relationship between Microaggressions and Mental Health in LGBTQ+ Emerging Adults

“…Antonacopoulos and Pychyl [60] hypothesized that highly attached pet owners may spend more time with their companion animals and, thus, engage in less social interaction with humans, leading them to feel more socially isolated. This is supported by a study conducted by Hartwig and Signal [61], which found that youth who were primary caretakers of their pet reported lower social support scores. Hartwig and Signal [61] also found that attachment to pets was positively associated with loneliness for youth who were primary caretakers.…”

“…This is supported by a study conducted by Hartwig and Signal [61], which found that youth who were primary caretakers of their pet reported lower social support scores. Hartwig and Signal [61] also found that attachment to pets was positively associated with loneliness for youth who were primary caretakers. Additionally, evidence from a longitudinal study that found that, after obtaining a pet dog, youths initially received more visits from friends; however, 12 months after getting the dog, youths who were more highly attached to their dog reported spending more time alone and less time with friends and family as compared to youths that were not highly attached to their dog [62].…”

The Effect of Pets on Human Mental Health and Wellbeing during COVID-19 Lockdown in Malaysia

“…The current study investigated the impact of pets on mental health and wellbeing in Malaysia during the MCO in 2020. The situation triggered a unique opportunity to study the effect of pets on their owners during this prolonged and imposed social isolation [ 22 , 23 ] and the experience of loneliness [ 24 ]. The Department of Statistical Malaysia (DOSM) published the country’s demographic structure in the first quarter of 2021 showing a population in Malaysia of 32.75 million, with 16.83 million males and 15.92 million females.…”

Longitudinal associations between pet relationship quality and socio‐emotional functioning in early adolescence

“…The importance of satisfaction as an element of positive youth‐pet relationships suggests that emotional and social support may be a key underlying factor associated with socio‐emotional well‐being. The measures of pet relationships in this study do not capture responsibility for the care of a pet, which has been demonstrated in prior research to impact relationship quality (Hartwig & Signal, 2020). Teasing out the relative impacts of time spent interacting/playing with a pet and engaging in responsibility for care is a fruitful direction for future research.…”