Human-Animal Interactions, ADHD: Self-Esteem, Self-Regulation and Social Skills

描述（由申请人提供）：注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）是一种常见的复杂障碍，对儿童的学校和家庭功能以及正常的儿童社会化过程产生不利影响。引人注目的是，患有多动症的儿童往往表现为自我调节能力差、自尊心差、社交行为差。虽然文献中充满了动物如何促进儿童身心健康的例子，但缺乏研究人类-动物相互作用（HAI）的良好对照，随机临床试验。许多研究人员和学者指出，尽管利用动物可能非常吸引人，但患者喜欢与动物互动的事实并不能证明其作为治疗过程的有效性。在治疗、心理教育环境下对HAI进行对照研究，可能有助于揭开其作为一种范式的神秘面纱，同时为在特征明确、行为紊乱的ADHD儿童群体中制定最佳实践指南迈出了第一步。ADHD是儿童最常见的精神疾病诊断。本提案的目的是调查HAI在促进被诊断为ADHD的学龄儿童的精神和情感健康方面的作用。目前诊断为ADHD的7至9岁儿童（N=108）将被招募到研究中，并将被随机分为两种治疗条件之一：社交技能训练结合HAI与小狗（N= 54）和社交技能训练结合HAI假与毛绒玩具小狗（N= 54）。此外，这些组中大约相同数量的受试者将作为对照条件等待12周（n=54）。我们将研究加州大学儿童发展中心心理教育治疗学校设置的6个队列的参与者，并将使用高度结构化的实验室学校协议来测量结果，以标准化和收集课堂表现以及注意力，行为和健康的评分，在12周后的基线，并在6周后再次评估潜在的维持效果。本研究将为未来研究HAI对患有ADHD和破坏性行为障碍的儿童和青少年的影响奠定基础。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common, complex disorder that adversely affects a child in school and family functioning and normal childhood socialization processes. It is striking that children with ADHD are often characterized by poor self-regulation, self-esteem, and social behaviors. Although the literature is filled with examples of how animals can promote human physical and emotional wellness in children, there is a lack of well-controlled, randomized clinical trials studying Human- Animal Interactions (HAI). Many researchers and scholars note that although the utilization of animals may be highly appealing, the fact that a patient enjoyed the interaction with an animal does not substantiate its efficacy as a therapeutic procedure. Conducting a controlled study of HAI in a therapeutic, psychoeducational setting may serve to demystify its use as a paradigm while providing a first step towards developing best practice guidelines within a well characterized, behaviorally disturbed population of children with ADHD, the most common psychiatric diagnosis of childhood. The goal of this proposal is to investigate the role of HAI in promoting mental and emotional well-being in school-aged children diagnosed with ADHD. Children between the ages of 7 to 9 years with a current diagnosis of ADHD (N=108) will be recruited into the study and will be randomized into one of two treatment conditions: Social Skills Training in combination with HAI with puppies (n=54), and Social Skills Training in combination with HAI Sham with stuffed animal puppies (n=54). In addition, approximately equal numbers of subjects from these groups will be wait listed for 12 weeks as a control condition (n=54). We will study participants in 6 cohorts in the psychoeducational, therapeutic school setting of the University of California, Child Development Center and will measure outcomes using the highly structured laboratory school protocol for standardization and collection of classroom performance and ratings of attention, deportment and well being at baseline, after the 12-week period, and again at 6 weeks later to assess potential maintenance of effects. This study will set the stage for future investigations on the effects of HAI in children and adolescents with ADHD and disruptive behavior disorders. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most prevalent childhood psychiatric disorder in the United States. Traditional medication treatments offer relatively immediate help to most children with ADHD, but there are pragmatic and safety issues that require the development of alternative interventions. The use of Human-Animal Interactions (HAI) may be one way to improve mental health and social skills in children without such risks. This study will provide insight into the role of social skills training and HAI on self-regulation, self-esteem and social behaviors in children with ADHD, a neurodevelopmental group that typically presents with poor social skills.