Characteristics of communication skills in children belonging to multispecies families

Abstract

Purpose to investigate the communicative skills of children belonging to multispecies families whose pet is a dog. Methods this is an exploratory, descriptive, qualitative, cross-sectional study. Sample: 34 subjects of both sexes aged three aged 3 to 4 years and 5 months belonging to multispecies families. The study was conducted at the subjects’ own homes. Procedure: The data were collected through observation and filming of a 30-min interaction situation in the family routine involving the presence of the dog. Analysis of the results: The data were analyzed and content analysis categories were then established regarding the most relevant verbal and nonverbal elements, with emphasis on the child-dog-adult interlocutor communicative interactions. Results the results showed that the dog played the role of interlocutor during the interaction scenes, with effects on the child’s communicative functions. Conclusion the results of this study point to possible benefits to communicative skills in multispecies interactions. Further studies on this theme are suggested.