The Process of Integrating Animal-Assisted Therapy into Clinical Social Work Practice
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ORIGINAL PAPER
The Process of Integrating Animal‑Assisted Therapy into Clinical Social Work Practice Katherine Compitus1
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019
Abstract Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) is considered an effective treatment model to use with a variety of populations and conditions, from autism to substance abuse, due to its flexible nature. As an integrative model, it often incorporates core modalities such as psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy and Gestalt therapy. Although there is a growing body of research addressing the efficacy of AAT, there is limited information on the actual process of utilizing AAT in clinical social work practice. Research shows that many clinicians support the use of AAT with clients but fail to integrate it into their own practice due to a lack of knowledge on the process of utilizing the model. This paper explores the process of integrating AAT into direct clinical practice and the theoretical basis for utilizing AAT as an adjunctive treatment model. Keywords Animal-assisted therapy · Attachment · Object relations · Integrative treatment · Canine-assisted psychotherapy · Mindfulness · Psychotherapy · Psychodynamic · Process · Implementation · Therapeutic alliance
Introduction Research indicates that the majority of clinicians (91.7%) have heard of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), the integration of an animal into the clinical treatment of clients, and view it as a legitimate therapeutic modality (Hartwig and Smelser 2018). There is a growing body of research on the benefits of AAT in clinical practice, but many clinicians are unsure how the process works or how to implement AAT with their own clients (Hartwig and Smelser 2018). One of the core values of social work includes the importance of human relationships (Workers 2008), and animals often help to build, establish and enhance interpersonal relationships among humans (Compitus 2019). From an evolutionary standpoint, humans have been working cooperatively with animals for 11-16,000 years and the mutual benefits of Special thanks to Dr. Carol Tosone, Dr. Aminda HeckmanChomanczuk, and Dr. Rise VanFleet for their helpful comments when reviewing this manuscript. * Katherine Compitus [email protected] 1
Silver School of Social Work, New York University, New York, NY, USA
the human–animal relationship has long been established (Freedman et al. 2014). Humans are social beings and caring for, or working cooperatively with, animals may be instinctively gratifying (Compitus 2019). The inclusion of animals in clinical treatment planning may tap into that long-established reciprocal relationship in a way that enhances therapeutic healing in humans. Animal-assisted therapy is multifaceted and works as both a skill-building and emotionally corrective intervention. The inclusion of a therapy animal in clinical practice provides a number of benefits to improve patient outcomes. The primary benefit is within the therapeutic alliance; a therapy animal
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