Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface: The Actively Caring for People (AC4P) Movement
- About the Authors
- Acknowledgments
- INTRODUCTION TO PART I EVIDENCE-BASED PRINCIPLES OF AC4P
- INTRODUCTION TO PART II APPLICATIONS OF AC4P PRINCIPLES
- 9 Actively Caring for Occupational Safety
- 10 Cultivating an AC4P Culture in Organizations
- 11 Actively Caring for Traffic Safety
- 12 Actively Caring to Prevent Alcohol Abuse
- 13 Actively Caring for Obesity
- 14 Actively Caring for Patient-Centered Healthcare
- 15 Actively Caring for Our Children
- 16 Actively Caring for Preschoolers
- 17 Actively Caring Coaching for Young Athletes
- 18 Actively Caring for Higher Education
- 19 Actively Caring for Mother Earth
- 20 The AC4P Power of Pets
- Epilogue: Where Do We Go from Here?
- Subject and Name Index
- References
20 - The AC4P Power of Pets
from INTRODUCTION TO PART II - APPLICATIONS OF AC4P PRINCIPLES
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 March 2016
Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface: The Actively Caring for People (AC4P) Movement
- About the Authors
- Acknowledgments
- INTRODUCTION TO PART I EVIDENCE-BASED PRINCIPLES OF AC4P
- INTRODUCTION TO PART II APPLICATIONS OF AC4P PRINCIPLES
- 9 Actively Caring for Occupational Safety
- 10 Cultivating an AC4P Culture in Organizations
- 11 Actively Caring for Traffic Safety
- 12 Actively Caring to Prevent Alcohol Abuse
- 13 Actively Caring for Obesity
- 14 Actively Caring for Patient-Centered Healthcare
- 15 Actively Caring for Our Children
- 16 Actively Caring for Preschoolers
- 17 Actively Caring Coaching for Young Athletes
- 18 Actively Caring for Higher Education
- 19 Actively Caring for Mother Earth
- 20 The AC4P Power of Pets
- Epilogue: Where Do We Go from Here?
- Subject and Name Index
- References
Summary
Some of our greatest historical and artistic treasures we place in museums; others, we take for walks.
– Roger CarasAre you wondering how a chapter about pets is connected to a book about using principles of humanistic behaviorism to nurture a culture of AC4P behavior? For me it's obvious, and I bet this is also the case for readers who have a pet they care for on a regular basis, especially a pet they consider part of their family.
How has your pet enriched your life? Compassionate pet owners surely actively care for their pets. And I contend the reciprocal benefits from our pets surpass any costs. How do these benefits both reflect and influence AC4P behavior? This chapter illustrates how pets, and caring for pets, can improve one's quality of life, family culture, and the human condition, as derived from both empirical research and personal experience.
MY AC4P AGENTS
Animals have always been a significant part of my life. Ever since I was able to walk, I was on the back of a pony; and ever since I was able to beg, I was asking for a kitten or a puppy to hold. Pets have been a huge inspiration for me, opening the social world, offering lasting friendships, and teaching me to cherish life itself. The positive and loyal affect pets have had on me is clear when I reflect on two of my most influential childhood pets – Goldie and Lady Champayne. I've come to understand the profound AC4P influence an animal can have on a child and the importance of a pet's AC4P-like unconditional affection. My relationship with these two special pets affected my other relationships within my family and beyond, especially facilitating my verbal interactions with others.
From a Beginning
This enriching connection with pets began when I (at age 5) put my hands around a stray cat and refused to let go, obligating my mother to bring him home. This was my pet cat – Goldie. We did more than just play together; we grew up together. We shared a unique friendship so incredible to me as a little girl that it seemed to contain the very meaning of life. At least it made my life meaningful.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Applied PsychologyActively Caring for People, pp. 623 - 644Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2016
References
1. I owe my pet attachments to my mom, Carol Hillis Geller. She always allowed me to bring home and actively care for the stray cats and dogs I found. She encouraged and inspired my love for pets. Her adoration and devotion to all pets and animals of any kind generalized to me. Thanks, Mom!
2. (1999). An invitation to social construction. London: Sage.
3. (1985). A study of pets in the family system. In & (Eds.). New perspectives on our lives with companion animals. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1983; (1985). Pets as family members. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 5–10.
4. , & (1985). The preadolescent/pet bond and psychosocial development. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 79–94.Google Scholar
5. (1985). Initiation and maintenance of the human–animal bond: Familial roles from a learning perspective. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 31–48; , & (1985).The preadolescent/pet bond and psychosocial development. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 79–94; (2000).The pet relationship impact inventory. Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 8, 192–198.
6. (1981). Interactions between people and their pets: Form and function. In (Ed.). Interactions between people and pets (pp. 41–67). Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
7. , & (1996). Between pets and people: The importance of animal companionship. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press.
8. (1998). The truth about cats and dogs. Fairfield County Woman, 30, 36–39; (1999). Companion animals and their companions: Sharing a strategy for survival. Technology and Society, 19, 201–203; (2000). The pet relationship impact inventory. Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 8, 192–198; , & (1985). Health benefits of pets for families. In (Ed.). Pets and the family (pp. 191–202). New York: Haworth Press; (1996). In the company of animals: A study for human-animal relationships. New York: Cambridge University Press.
10. (1999). Companion animals and their companions: Sharing a strategy for survival. Technology and Society, 19, 201–203; , , & (2000). Pets in the network of family relationships: An empirical study. In , , & (Eds.). Companion animals & us: Exploring the relationships between people and pets (pp. 209–236). New York: Cambridge University Press; (1983). Pets and their people. London: Collins Harvill.Google Scholar
11. American Veterinary Association (1983). The veterinary services market, Vols. I & II. Overland Park, KS: Charles, Charles & Associates.
12. (1986). The pet focused family: A systems theory perspective. Psychotherapy in Private Practice, 4, 13–17; , & (1985). Health benefits of pets for families. In (Ed.). Pets and the family (pp. 191–202). New York: Haworth Press.Google Scholar
13. , & (1985). Health benefits of pets for families. In (Ed.). Pets and the family (pp. 191–202). New York: Haworth Press.
14. (1996). In the company of animals: A study for human–animal relationships. New York: Cambridge University Press.
15. (1985). Initiation and maintenance of the human–animal bond: Familial roles from a learning perspective. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 31–48; , & (1985). The preadolescent/pet bond and psychosocial development. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 79–94; (1996). In the company of animals: A study for human–animal relationships. New York: Cambridge University Press.
16. (1986). The pet focused family: A systems theory perspective. Psychotherapy in Private Practice, 4, 13–17.Google Scholar
17. (1990). Our furry relations. Optimist, 16, 13–14; (1985). Pet/human bonding: Applications, conceptual and research issues. Marriage and Family Review, 8, 1–3.
18. (1985). The social meanings of pets: Alternative roles for companion animals. In (Ed.). Pets and the family (pp. 11–31). New York: Haworth Press.
19. (1999). Pets and people: The psychology of pet ownership. London: Whurr.
20. (1998). Pets and health. Psychological Reports, 83(3), 1211–1024; (1999). Pets and people: The psychology of pet ownership. London: Whurr.Google Scholar
21. , & (1993). Symbolic interactionism and family studies. In , , , , & (Eds.). Sourcebook of family theories and methods: A contextual approach (pp. 135–163). New York: Plenum.
22. (1990). Loneliness and the aging homosexual: Is pet therapy an answer?Journal of Homosexuality, 20, 137–142.Google Scholar
23. , & (1985). The preadolescent/pet bond and psychosocial development. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 79–94; , & (1985). Health benefits of pets for families. In (Ed.). Pets and the family (pp. 191–202). New York: Haworth Press; (1990). Our furry relations. Optimist, 16, 13–14.
24. (1999). An invitation to social construction. London: Sage, p. 124.
25. (2000). The pet relationship impact inventory. Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 8, 192–198.Google Scholar
26. , & (1993). Communication theory and the family. In , , , & (Eds.). Sourcebook of family theories and methods: A contextual approach (pp. 565–585). New York: Plenum.
27. (2000). Empathy with animals and with humans: Are they linked?Anthrozoos, 13, 194–202.Google Scholar
28. (1985). Initiation and maintenance of the human–animal bond: Familial roles from a learning perspective. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 31–48.Google Scholar
29. (1985). Initiation and maintenance of the human–animal bond: Familial roles from a learning perspective. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 31–48; , , , , , , et al. (1974). Laboratory aggression where the victim is a small dog. Social Behavior and Personality, 2, 174–176.
30. (2000). The pet relationship impact inventory. Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 8, 196.Google Scholar
31. , , & (1987). The human–animal bond: Implications for practice. Social Work, 32, 60–64.Google Scholar
32. (1985). Pet/human bonding: Applications, conceptual and research issues. Marriage and Family Review, 8, 1–3.Google Scholar
33. , & (1985). The preadolescent/pet bond and psychosocial development. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 79–94.Google Scholar
34. (2002). The power of pets: How animals affect family relationships. Unpublished master's thesis, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg.
35. , & (1996). Family theories: An introduction.Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; , & (1993). Symbolic interactionism and family studies. In , , , , & (Eds.). Sourcebook of family theories and methods: A contextual approach (pp. 135–163). New York: Plenum.
36. (1999). Companion animals and their companions: Sharing a strategy for survival. Technology and Society, 19, 201–203.Google Scholar
37. (1999). Companion animals and their companions: Sharing a strategy for survival. Technology and Society, 19, 201–203; (1985). Initiation and maintenance of the human–animal bond: Familial roles from a learning perspective. Marriage and Family Review, 8(3–4), 31–48.
38. (2005). Quantifying the power of pets: An instrument to assess attachment between humans and companion animals. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
39. (2005). Adapted from the Pet Attachment Scale developed and evaluated in my dissertation.
40. (1995). Pets, attachment, and well-being across the life cycle. Social Work, 40, 334–341.Google Scholar
41. , , & (2000). The influence of current relationships upon pet animal acquisition. In , , & (Eds.). Companion animals & us: Exploring the relationships between people and pets (pp. 109–121). New York: Cambridge University Press.
- 1
- Cited by