Animal-assisted therapy and loneliness in nursing homes: Use of robotic versus living dogs
Animal-assisted therapy and loneliness in nursing homes: Use of robotic versus living dogs
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DOI：
10.1016/j.jamda.2007.11.007
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发表时间：
2008-03-01
影响因子：
7.6
通讯作者：
Banks, William A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Banks, Marian R.;Willoughby, Lisa M.;Banks, William A.
孤独是长期护理机构（LTCF）的常见问题，以前的工作表明，动物辅助治疗（AAT）可以在一定程度上扭转孤独。在这里，我们比较了生活狗（狗）和机器狗（AIBO）治疗生活在LTCF中的老年患者的孤独感的能力。与未接受AAT的对照组相比，狗组和AIBO组的孤独感在统计学上都有显著改善。通过改良的列克星敦宠物依恋量表（MLAPS）测量，居民对狗和AIBO都表现出高水平的依恋。分量表分析显示，爱博组在“动物权利/动物福利”上的得分低于活狗，但在“一般依恋”和“人的替代”上的得分不低于活狗。然而，MLAPS测量与孤独感的变化无关，表明依恋不是AAT降低孤独感的机制。我们的结论是，互动的机器狗可以减少LTCF的居民的孤独感，并成为居民重视这些机器人。然而，依恋水平并不能解释与活体或机器狗进行AAT相关的孤独感下降。
Loneliness is a common problem in long-term care facilities (LTCF) and previous work has shown that animal-assisted therapy (AAT) can to some degree reverse loneliness. Here, we compared the ability of a living dog (Dog) and a robotic dog (AIBO) to treat loneliness in elderly patients living in LTCF. In comparison with a control group not receiving AAT, both the Dog and AIBO groups had statistically significant improvements in their levels of loneliness. As measured by a modified Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (MLAPS), residents showed high levels of attachment to both the dog and AIBO. Subscale analysis showed that the AIBO group scored lower than the living dog on "animal rights/animal welfare" but not on "general attachment" or "people substituting." However, MLAPS measures did not correlate with changes in loneliness, showing that attachment was not the mechanism by which AAT decreases loneliness. We conclude that interactive robotic dogs can reduce loneliness in residents of LTCF and that residents become attached to these robots. However, level of attachment does not explain the decrease in loneliness associated with AAT conducted with either a living or robotic dog.