Friends with benefits: On the positive consequences of pet ownership.
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Pet owners enjoyed better well-being when their pets fulfilled social needs better, and the support that pets provided complemented rather than competed with human sources.Abstract:
Social support is critical for psychological and physical well-being, reflecting the centrality of belongingness in our lives. Human interactions often provide people with considerable social support, but can pets also fulfill one’s social needs? Although there is correlational evidence that pets may help individuals facing significant life stressors, little is known about the well-being benefits of pets for everyday people. Study 1 found in a community sample that pet owners fared better on several well-being (e.g., greater self-esteem, more exercise) and individual-difference (e.g., greater conscientiousness, less fearful attachment) measures. Study 2 assessed a different community sample and found that owners enjoyed better well-being when their pets fulfilled social needs better, and the support that pets provided complemented rather than competed with human sources. Finally, Study 3 brought pet owners into the laboratory and experimentally demonstrated the ability of pets to stave off negativity caused by social rejection. In summary, pets can serve as important sources of social support, providing many positive psychological and physical benefits for their owners.read more
Citations
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Toward a psychology of human–animal relations.
Catherine E. Amiot,Brock Bastian +1 more
TL;DR: The current state of research on human-animal relations is reviewed, showing how this body of work has implications for a diverse range of psychological themes including evolutionary processes, development, normative factors, gender and individual differences, health and therapy, and intergroup relations.
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Transmission and Epidemiology of Zoonotic Protozoal Diseases of Companion Animals
TL;DR: A review of zoonotic protozoal mechanisms of virulence, epidemiology, and the transmission of pathogens of consequence to pet owners in the United States focused on Giardia and Toxoplasma gondii.
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Saving Mr. Nature: Anthropomorphism enhances connectedness to and protectiveness toward nature
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined whether anthropomorphism of nature has any impact on the way people relate to and behave toward nature and found that when nature is anthropomorphized, people feel more connected to it; this sense of connectedness mediates the association between anthropomorphisms of nature and conservation behavior.
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Pets as safe havens and secure bases: The moderating role of pet attachment orientations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the extent to which a pet functions as an attachment figure and found that physical or cognitive pet presence increased the number of life goals generated and self-confidence in goal attainment and reduced blood pressure during the distress-eliciting task.
Journal ArticleDOI
Dogs, cats, parasites, and humans in Brazil: opening the black box.
TL;DR: A compendium on dog and cat parasites in Brazil and a call for a One Health approach towards a better management of some of these parasites, which may potentially affect humans.
References
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The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation.
Roy F. Baumeister,Mark R. Leary +1 more
TL;DR: Existing evidence supports the hypothesis that the need to belong is a powerful, fundamental, and extremely pervasive motivation, and people form social attachments readily under most conditions and resist the dissolution of existing bonds.
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