Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy with Adult Female Survivors of Abuse

Meinersmann, Krista M; Bradberry, Judy; Roberts, Florence Bright

doi:10.3928/02793695-20081201-08

Cited by 37 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…EAA/Ts apparently serve diverse populations in terms of symptomatology, such as adult female survivors of abuse (Meinersmann, Bradberry, & Roberts, 2008), cancer survivors (Cantril & Haylock, 2007), people who are recovering from trauma (Yorke, Adams, & Coady, 2008), and nursing students (Roberts, Bradberry, & Williams, 2004). However, most of these studies are inconclusive, as they fail to use a control group.…”

Section: Evaluation Studies Demonstrating Eaa/t Benefits For Various mentioning

confidence: 99%

Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy: The Gap between Practice and Knowledge

Bachi

2012

Soc Animals

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Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy (EFP) is widely used, and the uses to which it can be put are still being developed. However, existing knowledge about this field is insufficient, and most of the research suffers from methodological problems that compromise its rigor. This review will explore research into the linked fields of Animal-Assisted Therapy and Equine-Assisted Activities/Therapies (EAA/T) related to physical health. Existing knowledge of mental, emotional, and social applications of EAA/T is presented. Evaluation studies in the subfield suggest that people benefit from interventions with horses. However, these studies suffer from fundamental problems, such as small sample size and lack of control groups. Naturalistic inquiry about theoretical aspects highlights the fundamental role that human-horse relations play in EAA/T, but these studies exhibit deficiencies in theory development. A multimethod approach could promote knowledge development for EFP. Suggestions for future research concern methodological solutions to improve evaluation studies, use of grounded theory method to develop theory, as well as applying attachment theory to the human-horse context, which may offer insight about the underlying processes for change.

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Section: Evaluation Studies Demonstrating Eaa/t Benefits For Various mentioning

confidence: 99%

Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy: The Gap between Practice and Knowledge

Bachi

2012

Soc Animals

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“…For example, recent qualitative studies suggest that horses are able to project positive feelings, such as compassion and unconditional love, which in turn provide opportunities for corrective emotional experiences. These corrective experiences entail positive reframing of previous negative patterns of behavior, and even transformational or life-changing events (Aardoom, 2007;Esbjorn, 2006;Hallberg, 2008;Held, 2006;Irwin (2001); Meinersmann et al, 2008); Rector (2005); Webb, W. (2002).…”

Section: Horse-human Relationship and Emotional Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Of Equines and Humans: Toward a New Ecology

Garcia

2010

Ecopsychology

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Since the domestication of the horse *6000 years ago, the equinehuman relationship has played a crucial role in the evolution of humankind. Horses enabled the conquering of new worlds and civilizations, forging an intimate interspecies relationship that is complex and difficult to articulate. No longer used primarily as companions in battle and beasts of burden, horses are today predominantly visible in the Western world of competitive sports and pleasure riding. New fields have also opened up in the past two decades, where horses are being utilized as friends, teachers, and therapists-namely, therapeutic riding and equine-facilitated psychotherapy/learning. This article explores two dimensions of equine-facilitated learning: (1) ways in which horses communicate, and how the human perceives this phenomenon, and (2) ways in which horses help humans construct systems of shared meanings (i.e., community). Both of these dimensions may have important implications for understanding how horse-human encounters can promote emotional well-being and ecological awareness. Further, the study contextualizes this exploration by drawing connections to Gregory Bateson's thought on esthetics, grace, and ecosystemic health.

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“…For example, Meinersmann, Bradberry, and Roberts (2008) found that women who had experienced abuse during their lives and had participated in EFP/EAP reported that interactions with horses provided opportunities to increase selfefficacy, enhance feelings of empowerment, and develop a sense of trust and support. Similarly, Yorke et al (2008) research with victims of trauma indicated that the impact of the equine-human relationship was beneficial in restoring the trauma survivor's sense of safety, decreasing symptoms of depression, and offering an opportunity for acceptance.…”

Section: Evidence Involving Efp/eap and Victims Of Traumamentioning

confidence: 99%