Horse reactions to human attitudes and behavior

Chamove, Arnold S.; Crawley-Hartrick, Ocean J. E.; Stafford, Kevin J.

doi:10.2752/089279302786992423

Cited by 55 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…As earlier studies have shown, an individual's attitude toward the horse affects his/her activity with the horse (Chamove et al, 2002;Hama et al,1996;Henry et al, 2005), which in turn affects the possibility of the horse being perceived as an emotional mirror. Additionally, clients communicate less with the staff when the focus of the task is mostly on performance.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They sense fear and interpret human intentions as expressed through body language and pheromones (Ekesbo, 2011;Smith-Osborne & Selby, 2010). A person's attitude toward the horse often directly affects the behavior of the horse (Chamove et al, 2002;Hama, Yogo, & Matsuyama, 1996;Henry et al, 2005). Carlsson et al (2014) found that the essence of EASW is that the horse has the capacity to function as an emotional mirror for humans.…”

Section: Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-assisted Smentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The horse reflects human emotions through body language, which is perceived as immediate, honest, clear, and nonjudgmental (Carlsson et al, 2014). The horse feels comfortable when the humans' authentic emotions are acknowledged and their body language MENTALIZING AND EMOTIONAL LABOR FACILITATES EASW 5 acts according to these emotions (Chamove, Crawley-Hatrick, & Stafford, 2002;Ekesbo, 2011;Henry, Hemery, Richard, & Hausberger, 2005;Minero and Canali, 2008).…”

Section: Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-assisted Smentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-Assisted Social Work with Self-harming Adolescents

Carlsson

Ranta

Træen

2015

Child Adolesc Soc Work J

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This article explores equine-assisted social work (EASW). Horses' capacities to mirror human emotions create possibilities for authentic relationships between clients and staff. This study examines what eases or counteracts the horse's capacity to facilitate relationships perceived by humans to be authentic. Video recordings of the human-horse interactions of three staff members and four female self-harming clients aged 15-21 years in a residential treatment facility were analyzed. The findings show that if the staff gave instructions and advice similar to traditional equestrian sports in combination with viewing the horse as an object, EASW is not facilitated. EASW seems to be facilitated when the horse is perceived as a subject by both staff and clients, provided that the staff gave meaning to the horse's behavior. The staff needed to highlight empathy for the horse when the horse is not able to fulfill its task without adding depth to the client's performance, to avoid raising defense mechanisms. The essence of EASW were perceived as eased by staff members when they focus on the client's emotions and help the client understand that the horse is acting in response to the client's and the staff´s behavior through mentalizing and enacting emotional labor in regarding the horse as a subject. The results indicate the need for higher demands on staff members in order to facilitate EASW.Depending on whether the staff and the clients focus on performance or on emotions, different positive or negative outcomes on communication, self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-image will be likely to emerge.Keywords: adolescents, emotional labor, equine-assisted social work, mentalizing, self-injury MENTALIZING AND EMOTIONAL LABOR FACILITATES EASW 3Mentalizing and emotional labor facilitate equine-assisted social work with self-harming adolescents Equine Assisted Social Work (EASW) may contribute positively to the treatment of adolescents with psychiatric disorders, or those who are at risk for developing such disorders.It may be of value to develop social skills, feelings of mastery, meta-cognition and reflectivity abilities, self-confidence and self-esteem in these individuals (Bizub, Joy, & Davidson, 2003;Dell, Chalmers, Bresette, Swain, Rankin, & Hopkins, 2011;Dell, Chalmers, Dell, Sauve, & MacKinnon, 2008;Hauge, Kvalem, Pedersen, & Braastad, 2013;Holmes, Goodwin, Redhead, & Goymour, 2011;Klontz, Bivens, Leinart, & Klontz, 2007; Macauley & Guitierrez, 2004;Rothe, Vega, Torres Campos Soler, & Molina Pazos, 2005;Rothe, 2005;Smith-Osborne & Selby, 2010), as well as to contribute to the development of communication skills, emotional awareness and regulation, reduce anxiety, and provide opportunities for experiencing authentic relationships (Bizub, et al., 2003;Carlsson, Nilsson-Ranta, & Traeen, 2014;Karol, 2007). Even though not all studies point in the same positive direction (Ewing, MacDonald, Taylor, & Bowers, 2007;Greenwald, 2001), there is reason to explore how EASW may be used in the treatment of different patient ...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-assisted Smentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-assisted Smentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-Assisted Social Work with Self-harming Adolescents

Carlsson

Ranta

Træen

2015

Child Adolesc Soc Work J

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“…A study on how human psychological and physiological state can be perceived by horses was performed in [5] via the study of the heart rate. A more relaxed equine behavior was observed when humans showed positive attitudes toward them [6,7], while an equine increased heart rate was observed when humans were engaged in negative thinking [8]. A nervous mood can be transmitted from humans to horses under handling and riding conditions [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Wearable System for the Evaluation of the Human-Horse Interaction: A Preliminary Study

et al. 2016

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Abstract:This study reports on a preliminary estimation of the human-horse interaction through the analysis of the heart rate variability (HRV) in both human and animal by using the dynamic time warping (DTW) algorithm. Here, we present a wearable system for HRV monitoring in horses. Specifically, we first present a validation of a wearable electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring system for horses in terms of comfort and robustness, then we introduce a preliminary objective estimation of the human-horse interaction. The performance of the proposed wearable system for horses was compared with a standard system in terms of movement artifact (MA) percentage. Seven healthy horses were monitored without any movement constraints. As a result, the lower amount of MA% of the wearable system suggests that it could be profitably used for reliable measurement of physiological parameters related to the autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity in horses, such as the HRV. Human-horse interaction estimation was achieved through the analysis of their HRV time series. Specifically, DTW was applied to estimate dynamic coupling between human and horse in a group of fourteen human subjects and one horse. Moreover, a support vector machine (SVM) classifier was able to recognize the three classes of interaction with an accuracy greater than 78%. Preliminary significant results showed the discrimination of three distinct real human-animal interaction levels. These results open the measurement and characterization of the already empirically-proven relationship between human and horse.

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“…However, it is controversial if animals may respond the same way to familiar or unfamiliar humans in different behavioral tests (Tanida et al 1995;Hemsworth et al 1994;Simpson 2002;Henry et al 2005). Besides, the influence of factors such as the experience of the evaluator with equine handling and human body posture during behavioral assessments still raises questions (McKinley and Sambrook 2000;Chamove et al 2002;Seaman et al 2002). The present study aims to assess the capability of foals in discriminating between familiar and unfamiliar humans and between humans with or without handling experience.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gently handled foals generalize responses to humans

Schmidek¹,

Oliveira²,

Trindade³

et al. 2018

JABB

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Equines perform tasks along humans, and there are evidences and controversies that they are able to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar humans. This study assessed whether foals can discriminate between humans in terms of familiarity and human experience in equine handling. Daily, in the first two weeks of life, 30 foals went through a short section of gentle handling. After about four months, a human forced approach test was carried out by 4 evaluators varying in the familiarity aspect and experience with equine handling. Data was submitted to the McNemar test (P<0.05). In 66.7% of the assessments, the foals accepted the human approach, and among the positive cases, 60.0% were characterized by seeking contact with the evaluators. Among the foals that accepted the human approach, 97.5% also accepted tactile stimulation. No differences were found regarding the familiarity of the evaluators (P>0.05) or their experience in equine handling (P>0.05). The individual variation was evident, which indicates that we must work with personalized training techniques, in which the behavior of each individual is the main factor to be considered. Our results show that the adoption of good handling practices with foals favored their relationship with humans, and it is possible to assume that such practices can improve animal welfare, as well as the safety of the humans that will have contact with them in the future.

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Horse reactions to human attitudes and behavior

Cited by 55 publications

References 11 publications

Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-Assisted Social Work with Self-harming Adolescents

Mentalizing and Emotional Labor Facilitate Equine-Assisted Social Work with Self-harming Adolescents

A Wearable System for the Evaluation of the Human-Horse Interaction: A Preliminary Study

Gently handled foals generalize responses to humans

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