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Spouses and cats and their effects on human mood
Abstract and Figures
Previous data indicated that cats influence the moods of singly living people only by decreasing negative moods, while not affecting positive moods. In this study, we asked if such an effect can be 1) replicated, 2) is comparable to the effect of a human partner, and 3) related to the owner’s attachment towards the cat. Two hundred and twelve couples with cats, 31 couples without cats, singly living people with cats (47 women, 45 men) and singly living people without cats (43 women, 9 men) volunteered to
participate. We used a list of adjectives (the “EWL”-Questionnaire) to assess their mood, which they responded to on an evening of their choice. The Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS) was additionally completed
by the cat owners. Selected adjectives were reduced by factor analyses and labeled bad mood, activity, good mood, and seclusion, according to the highest loadings of mood items within each factor. Each mood factor
was explained by cat ownership, presence or absence of a partner, and the person’s sex. Further, sex, partner status and attachment towards cats explained moods amongst the cat owners. Only the partner, but not the cat,
enhanced positive moods. Cats alleviated negative moods, and this effect was comparable to the effect of a human partner. This compensatory effect of cat ownership on negative moods was not comparable to a similar effect of degree of attachment towards the cat on human mood. Possible reasons for the unidirectional effect of cats on human mood are discussed.
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... It is tempting to say that cats of these owners function as additions or substitutes for human relationships, but as we did not did not assess the level of social support provided by people and feelings of loneliness, we cannot make firm statements about this. Interestingly, scores for the cat's empathy were not significantly different between owners who do and do not live alone, which contradicts previous findings [37,96]. This could be due to the formulation of the 'empathy' statement in our study as 'my cat knows when I am upset and tries to comfort me', which actually includes two statements ('knows when upset' and 'trying to comfort'). ...
... Attribution of sociocognitive qualities such as 'perceptive', 'empathetic', and 'considerate' to animals makes it possible for them to be a source of emotional support and friendship to us [37,96,97]. As descendants of solitary hunters [96], such sociocognitive skills might be less evolved in cats compared with group-living animals such as humans and dogs, for whom social skills are necessary for survival. ...
... Attribution of sociocognitive qualities such as 'perceptive', 'empathetic', and 'considerate' to animals makes it possible for them to be a source of emotional support and friendship to us [37,96,97]. As descendants of solitary hunters [96], such sociocognitive skills might be less evolved in cats compared with group-living animals such as humans and dogs, for whom social skills are necessary for survival. Studies on the social skills of cats are scarce (partly due to the methodological difficulties of testing cats in unfamiliar environments). ...
Describing the relationship with one’s cat in human terms might reflect an underlying anthropomorphic view of the relationship which might be associated with an owner’s behavior towards their cat and the cat’s living environment. Owners self-categorized the relationship with their cat as either a ‘member of the family’, ‘as a child’, ‘best friend’, or ‘a pet animal’. The extent to which owner- and cat-related factors influence these four relationship descriptions are examined in survey data of approximately 1800 cat owners. Differences in outdoor access, care during absence of the owner, and access to the bedroom are examined between the four relationship perceptions. The owner’s age and household composition, ideas about their cat’s equality, support, and dependency, and whether their cat is a pedigree were significantly associated with relationship description and explained 46% of the variance. Owners who perceive their cat as a child or best friend see their cat as loyal, empathetic, equal to family, and dependent on them for love and care. Their cats are less often left in the care of others, are allowed more often in the bedroom and have less often (unrestricted) outdoor access. Moreover, cats perceived as children are more likely to live in a multi-cat household. Our results provide insight in the factors that are related to different (anthropomorphic) perceptions of the human–cat relationship and how perceptions relate to the living environment of cats.
... Animal companions can be a source of life satisfaction and positive emotions with recreational time spent with pets. Pets may also be instrumental in helping to lift depressive moods and reducing stress (McNicholas et al. 2005;Rieger and Turner 1999;Turner et al. 2003). These findings strongly suggest that pet ownership may be an important source of happiness and emotional wellbeing at older ages. ...
... Pet bonding also seemed to be higher for older pet owners. These results are consistent with other studies showing pet ownership as compensation for the absence of human companionship (Zasloff and Kidd 1994) and reduce the prevalence of bad mood (Turner et al. 2003). ...
While interactions with pets may yield significant emotional, social, and physical benefits, taking care of them can also be demanding and experienced as a burden, especially among persons with physical restrictions or economically disadvantaged individuals. This study investigates pet ownership and corresponding perceptions and experiences in a nationally representative sample of adults aged 55 years and older in Switzerland. We use data from a questionnaire on human-animal interactions from 1832 respondents administered during wave 7 (2017) in the Swiss country study of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe. Multivariable associations between pet ownership and pet owners’ corresponding perceptions and experiences with respondents’ socio-demographic characteristics were estimated using probit and ordered probit models. Slightly more than one-third of adults aged 55 years and older reported owning a pet. Pet owners reported mostly positive experiences with pet ownership, with women showing higher pet bonding levels than men. Moreover, pet ownership was less common among adults aged 75 and older and individuals living in apartments. At the same time, older pet owners aged 75 and above, pet owners living in apartments, and pet owners without a partner reported more positive perceptions and experiences of owning a pet. These findings suggest that promoting pet ownership may help individual well-being and feelings of companionship, especially among women, older adults, and individuals without a partner but also points toward potential selection effects into pet ownership. Financial costs of pet ownership appear to be an important challenge for some older pet owners, notably those with relatively low levels of education and more limited financial resources.
... The effects of humans on cats based on oxytocin and cortisol levels in urine were analyzed by Nagasawa et al. [11]. The effect of cats on humans was investigated by Turner et al. [12]. ...
Human–animal interactions and the emotional relationship of the owner with the pet are the subjects of many scientific studies and the constant interest of not only scientists but also pet owners. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the hair cortisol levels of dogs, cats, and their owners living in the same household. The owners were asked to complete a questionnaire concerning the frequency of their interactions with pets and emotional relationship with each of their cats and each of their dogs. The study involved 25 women who owned at least one dog and at least one cat. In total, 45 dogs and 55 cats from 25 households participated in the study. The average level of hair cortisol of the owners was 4.62 ng/mL, of the dogs 0.26 ng/mL, and in the hair of cats 0.45 ng/mL. There was no significant correlation between the hair cortisol level of the owner and dog or the owner and the cat and between dogs and cats living together. A significant positive correlation was observed between the hair cortisol level in the owner and the pet, for dogs in which the owner performs grooming treatments once a week and for cats which are never kissed. Although our study did not find many significant correlations, studies using other stress markers might have yielded different results.
... Los beneficios de las TAA han sido investigados en diversos trabajos: como la disminución de la presión sanguínea (Friedmann y Thomas, 1995;Odendaal y Lehmann, 2000), la disminución del estrés y la ansiedad (Barker, Knisely, McCain, Schubert, y Pandurangi, 2010;Haubenhofer y Kirchengast, 2007;Qureshi, Zeeshan, Vazquez, y Suri, 2009), el efecto de neurotransmisores y aumento en la hormona oxitocina (Odendaal, 2000;Odendaal y Meintjes, 2003), la facilitación de apoyo psicológico y social (McConnell, Brown, Shoda, Stayton, y Martin, 2011), la disminución de síntomas depresivos (Holcomb, Jendro, Weber, y Nahan, 1997;Tower y Nokota, 2006;Turner, Rieger, y Gygax, 2003), la mejora del autoestima y estado de ánimo (McConnell et al., 2011) y el aumento de la interacción social (Hunt, Hart, y Gomulkiewicz, 1992;McNicholas y Collis, 2000). ...
La utilización de diversos animales para obtener cambios o mejoras en pacientes, estudiantes o personas usuarias de diferentes colectivos específicos de intervención psicosocial y sanitaria es cada vez más frecuente y reconocida. Existen diversas investigaciones con rigurosas metodologías que investigan las propiedades terapéuticas atribuidas al hecho de establecer vínculos con los animales. Los efectos positivos proceden de interaccionar con diferentes tipos de animales en terapia o actividades de diversa índole, pero también, incluso, de sólo observarlos. Beck y Katcher (2003) plantean que si existe un interés de las personas por los animales y esto aporta cosas positivas esto debe de ser utilizado. Sin embargo, debemos tener en cuenta que a pesar de la gran cantidad de investigaciones que avalan su eficacia, existe una escasa descripción metodológica de las Terapias Asistidas con Animales, así como la definición de los indicadores que posibilitan reproducir los estudios (Caravaca-Llamas y Sáez-Olmos, 2019). Este paradigma metodológico es lo que se conoce por las Intervenciones Asistidas con Animales (en adelante IAA), que a su vez prestan diferentes tipologías (Delta Society, 1992; IAHAIO, 2013; Kruger y Serpell, 2010): la Educación Asistida con Animales (EAA), las Actividades Asistidas con Animales (AAA) y las Terapias Asistidas con Animales (TAA). Aunque también encontramos referencias bajo la expresión Animal Facilitated Therapy (AFT) o uso terapéutico de las relaciones entre las personas y los animales no humanos para mejorar la salud emocional y física de las personas (Beck, 2000). En España también se suele emplear el término Terapia Asistida por Animales de Compañía (TAAC) que son intervenciones supervisadas y guiadas por profesionales de la disciplina donde se introduce en las sesiones a uno o varios animales de diversas formas con el objetivo de provocar efectos positivos en las personas usuarias o pacientes (Caravaca-Llamas, 2019). Estas intervenciones pueden ser realizadas tanto a nivel grupal como individual y los tipos de animales son muy diversos, tanto en las especies como en las características individuales. En concreto, la presente investigación ha utilizado la TAA en su modalidad con perros (caninoterapia).
... The latter implies that learning is probably involved. Rieger and Turner [42] found a tendency for cats to react to negative moods of their owners when close to them with more vocalizations and flank-rubbing, while Turner, Rieger, and Gygax [43] later confirmed that cats alleviated negative moods, comparable to the effect of a human partner. ...
After recent publication of several reviews covering research results from the last 35 years of domestic cat studies, a number of important unanswered questions and hypotheses have arisen that could interest active researchers, especially those beginning their academic careers. Some sections of this paper concern methodologies that have yielded new insights and could provide more in the future; other sections concern findings and interpretations of those that need further testing. First, hypotheses arise from combining subjective (or psychological) assessments of cat and human personality traits and observational (ethological) studies of cat–human interactions: e.g., do owners with high attachment to their cats interact differently with them than owners with low attachment levels? New analytical methods of dyadic interaction observations open the door for testing further hypotheses. In particular, the Theme® (Noldus bv, NL) program could be used to determine if there are differences between cat breeds in interaction patterns with people, which is not only of interest to owners but also therapists employing cats in their practices. Cat breed differences have been found using subjective ratings, but these need to be corroborated by direct observational data from the home setting and/or non-invasive colony observations, since ratings based on anthropomorphic projections might not be reliable. This should be done before searching for the genetic basis of such differences. Reliable information on breed differences is also needed before prescribing certain breeds for animal-assisted interventions. A model has predicted that the degree of socialization as a kitten affects cats’ responses to positive and negative experiences with unfamiliar humans and their formation of feline–human relationships later on. This needs to be tested in an ethically approved manner on cats of known socialization status and has enormous consequences for cat adoptions from animal shelters. Observations of human–cat interactions have yielded many correlations, which can be tested by non-invasive manipulations of human behavior in the home setting. Examples of these will be given and are of general interest to the cat-owning public. A review of first findings on social cognition in cats has resulted in further unanswered questions and hypotheses. Finally, two aspects of domestic cat ecology will be considered (effects on wildlife and space utilization), which are of great interest to the public and conservationists alike.
... After a long day at work there is nothing better than opening the door to a dog who is so visibly excited to see you. For some participants, pet ownership helped to regulate, or stabilize low mood, consistent with previous research (e.g., Turner et al., 2003). ...
Contact with animals has been increasingly recognized as being beneficial to mental health and wellbeing due to their therapeutic function, with “animal-assisted therapies” gaining in popularity. There is less research exploring how companion animals within the home impact upon mental health and wellbeing. This qualitative study explores people’s experiences of the role of their pets in reducing or exacerbating their mental health symptomology and general wellbeing. One hundred and nineteen adults, 41 with a diagnosed mental health condition, and 70 recently struggling with their mental health, completed an online survey with open and closed questions to explore their experiences of their pets and mental health. Through thematic analysis, seven key themes were identified. Six themes encompassed benefits of pets; increased hedonic tone; increased motivation and behavioral activation; reduced anxiety symptoms and panic attacks; increased social connections and reduced loneliness; reduced risk behaviors; and coping and aiding the recovery process. One theme encompassed negative impacts: increased negative feelings and emotional strain. Notably, pets reduced urges of self-harm, and prevented onsets of panic attacks and suicide attempts. Both direct mechanisms (e.g., lowering physiological anxiety through physical touch) and indirect mechanisms (e.g., elevating mood through humor, increased mindfulness and disrupting rumination) were identified. These findings encapsulate the complex roles that pets can play in people’s mental health and wellbeing, and highlights that even when the human–pet relationship is regarded positively, pets cannot “treat” mental health difficulties, and should not be viewed as such. Mental health practitioners should be aware and considerate of the importance of pets in people’s lives as well as individual differences in the potential capability of pets to both reduce or exacerbate mental health symptomology and overall wellbeing.
... More mood subscales in women than in men are affected by the cat, and they are more strongly affected than in men. Turner et al. (44) concluded that only the partner, but not the cat, enhances positive moods, while the cats alleviate negative moods. This effect was comparable to the effect of a human partner. ...
This is a mini review that summarizes what is known from quantitative observational studies of social interactions between domestic cats and humans in both laboratory colonies and the home setting. Only results from data that have been statistically analyzed are included; hypotheses still to be tested will be declared as such. In some cases, the observational data have been combined with independently collected subjective assessments by the owners of the animals' character and owner personality traits to help interpret the data. Further some relevant experimental studies are also included. All social interactions between cats and humans that are discussed below assume that the animals were socialized to people as kittens, the first topic of this review. Such socialized cats show what might be called “friendliness to humans,” which in turn affects human attachment to the cat. The visual and acoustic behavioral elements used to communicate and interact with other cats can be perceived by people and are also employed by the cats when interacting with them. The initiation, and the initiator of social interactions between cats and humans have been shown to influence both the duration of the interaction bout and total interaction time in the relationship. Compliance with the interactional “wishes” of the partner is positively correlated between the cats and the humans over all human-cat dyads examined. Cats do not spontaneously prefer one gender or age cohort of people, but the humans in those cohorts behave differently to the cats causing the latter to react differentially. The dyadic interaction structure has also been shown to differ between women and men and between older and younger adults. Nevertheless, cats—merely their presence but of course their behavior—can affect human moods and human mood differences have been shown to affect the behavior of the cats. Finally, differences have been found between interactions with purebred and non-purebred cats and between younger and older cats.
... Cat-human relationships resulted in fact in stress relief and in increased companionship (Bernstein et al. 2000). Further, owners experienced better health (including fewer occurrences of minor health problems such as cold and flu) and social benefits, such as more positive moods and promotion of social interactions (Serpell 1991, Bernstein et al. 2000, Turner et al. 2003, Lewis et al. 2009. ...
Kapitel enthält: emotionale, soziale und ethische Aspekte von Berührungen; Placeboeffekte; Embodiment; Haus- und Therapietiere; Einsamkeit. - Abstract: Im medizinischen Kontext können von erforderlichen Berührungen, die einem medizinischen oder pflegerischen Zweck dienen, soziale Berührungen unterschieden werden. Diese, oft spontan auftretenden Berührungen, erfüllen soziale oder emotionale Funktionen. Soziale Berührungen können beruhigend, tröstend, angst-, schmerz- oder stressreduzierend wirken. Es besteht somit die Möglichkeit, soziale Berührungen im medizinischen oder pflegerischen Kontext gezielt zu diesen Zwecken einzusetzen.
The aim of this study was to apply the FaceReader technique to select the animal species and breed for a personalized AAT based on the emotions (‘neutral’, ‘happy’, ‘sad’, ‘angry’, ‘surprised’, ‘scared’, ‘disgusted’, and ‘contempt’) induced in the persons (18–64 years old) by the images of different animal species and breeds. To implement the aim, the images of different animal species (Canis familiaris, Felis silvestris catus, Sus scrofa domesticus, Ovis aries, and Equus caballus) and their breeds (dogs: Australian shepherd, pug, Labrador retriever, Doberman, miniature schnauzer, beagle, three mixed-breed types, Yorkshire terrier, Cane Corso, Samoyed, and Chihuahua; cats: British shorthair, Himalayan cat, three mixed breed types, Siamese cat, Sphynx, and Bengal cat; horses: Norwegian Fjord, Exmoor pony, Andalusian, and Friesian; pigs: Vietnamese pot-bellied and Kunekune; sheep: Herdwick sheep and Suffolk sheep) were used. This study showed that the animal species is a significant factor in the intensity of the emotions ‘neutral’ and ‘happy’ as well as valence, and the animal breed is a significant factor for the emotion ‘happy’ intensity and valence. The obtained results could be used as a personalized strategy for improving AAT and helping the individuals to select a pet.
Cardiovascular disease increases with age, but some of the factors thought to be related to CAD, including the personality disposition of neuroticism, show a pattern of lifelong stability. In the present paper, chest pain reports and other CAD symptoms are analyzed in the context of a model of personality and health which emphasizes the role of the enduring disposition of neuroticism as a determinant of perceptions of health. In the first study, the association between chest pain complaints and psychological distress measured by depression and low general well-being is documented for both sexes and for age groups from 25 to 74 in a national sample. Chest pain complaints increased with age, but an hypothesized age by chest pain group interaction was not found. In the second study, the direction of the causal connection is investigated in a longitudinal retrospective-predictive study of CAD diagnoses in a sample of 123 men followed for periods of up to 20 years. Personality variables did not predict the development of CAD, but emotional instability and diffuse somatic complaints were predictive of anginal diagnoses in subjects who showed no other signs of CAD. Alternate interpretations of the differential prediction of anginal complaints from neuroticism are discussed.
The authors examine the possibility that personality traits linked to positive and negative affect susceptibilities also influence performance on a mood-sensitive cognitive task: likelihood judgments of possible positive and negative future events. In Study 1, participants (n = 104) filled out personality questionnaires, rated their current mood states, and rated the likelihood that positive and negative future events would occur. Results confirmed the hypothesis that affect-related traits predict likelihood judgments. Moreover, the personality effects were not mediated by current mood states. A second study (n = 81) replicated these personality effects on judgment in the context of manipulated moods (positive, sad, fearful, and neutral). As in Study 1, personality effects on judgment were not mediated by mood states. The authors suggest that the traits of extraversion and neuroticism include stable cognitive structures that can bias judgment in affect-congruent directions.
Equivalent English and German versions of the State-Trait Depression Scales (STDS) were developed and presented to samples of American and German students who were comparable with regard to gender and age. Factorial structure and equivalence of the two versions were determined by confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). The CFAs included multiple group analyses which were employed to compare factor patterns, loadings, factor variances and covariances across the two samples. In addition, statistical and psychometric properties of the items and scales were determined and mean differences between nationalities and genders on these scales were tested. In order to obtain information about the external validity, relationships between the STDS and tests which already exist in English and German (several depression scales as well as the State-Trait Personality Inventory, the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory, and the Mainz Coping Inventory) were analysed.
A prospective questionnaire survey was used to investigate the impact of obtaining a new pet dog on the lives of 27 middle childhood children and their families, during the first year of ownership. Changes in the social interactions, health, behaviour and well being of subject children were assessed using maternal questionnaires administered immediately before the pet dog was acquired, and at follow-ups, 1, 6 and 12 months later. Similar questionnaires were administered over the same period to a comparable group of 29 non-dog-owning mothers. Dog-owning children were reported to have been visited more by their friends by the time of the 1 month follow-up, compared with their non-dog-owning counterparts (U = 256.0, P < 0.05). Dog-owning families also engaged in more leisure activities at home together over the same period (U = 268.0, P < 0.05). However, dog-owning children were also reported to have experienced increases in the number of ill health symptoms they suffered by the 12 month follow-up (z = 2.6297, P < 0.01). Higher levels of attachment to the dog were positively associated with changes in confidence by the 6 month follow-up (T = 0.3971, P < 0.005), and negatively associated with changes in tearfulness or weepiness by the 12 month follow-up (T = −0.3118, P < 0.05).
This study investigated how depressive feelings affect the behavior of singly living persons toward their cats. Data from 47 women and 49 men, who were visited at home for one two-hour observation session, were used for the analyses. Just prior to and after the observations, participants filled out a standard questionnaire used to assess momentary mood (EWL). The mood was assigned to one of 14 sub-scales, one of which was "depressiveness." Identical questionnaires were later completed by the same subjects in the absence of the observer (43 women, 45 men), and these results compared with those of questionnaires sent to singly living, former cat owners (28 women, three men). Five behavior elements were found to be affected by depressiveness: 1) intents to interact, 2) the starting of interactions, 3) intents, where the partner is willing to comply and interacts, and 4) head- and flank-rubbing by the cat (using multiple regression, Mann-Whitney U tests and Spearman rank correlations). Results show that the more a person was depressive, the fewer intents to interact were shown. However, the more a person was depressive, the more (s)he started an interaction. This means that depressive persons had an initial inhibition to initiate that was compensated by the presence of the cat. People who felt less depressive after the two hours of the study, owned cats that were more willing to comply with their intents than those whose depressiveness stayed the same or became worse. In human-cat dyads in which the person became more depressive, the person's willingness to comply tended to correlate positively with the cat's willingness to comply. When not in close contact, the cat reacted the same way to all mood scales of the humans. This neutral attitude makes the cat an attractive pacemaker against an inhibition to initiate. Within an interaction the cat is affected by the mood. But only the willingness of the cat to comply seems to be responsible for reducing depressiveness. Female cat owners were also found to be less depressed than former owners.
Pet ownership and attachment to a pet have been reported to have a salutary influence on health in selected populations. General population surveys of the beneficial effects of pet ownership have not been conducted. The purpose of this national survey was to examine the relationship of pet ownership and attachment to self-reported illness behavior and emotional distress in three stages of life: early adulthood (21 to 34 years of age), early middle age (35 to 44 years of age), and late middle age (45 to 64 years of age). Data were obtained from a probability sample of U.S. households with at least one resident aged 21 to 64 years of age selected by random-digit dialing using a two-stage cluster design stratified by U.S. census regions. The response rate was 65.7%, yielding a sample of 1,300 household respondents. Emotional distress was measured using the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale. Illness behavior was assessed by the number of physician visits, prescription medications used, reduction in physical activity as a result of ill health, and hospitalizations within the previous year. No significant associations were found between pet ownership and attachment to pets and the illness behavior scores. Nor were significant associations found between pet ownership and attachment to pets and emotional distress. However, pet ownership and attachment to pets did contribute to the overall model of illness behavior and emotional distress in this survey. This study provides support for the notion that, while selected population groups may benefit from pet ownership, the association between ownership and attachment and health may be complex and inconsistent over all age groups.
The authors examine the possibility that personality traits linked to positive and negative affect susceptibilities also influence performance on a mood-sensitive cognitive task: likelihood judgment is of possible positive and negative future events. In Study 1, participants (n = 104) filled out personality questionnaires, rated their current mood states, and rated the likelihood that positive and negative future events would occur. Results confirmed the hypothesis that affect-related traits predict likelihood judgments. Moreover; the personality effects were not mediated by current mood states. A second study (n = 81) replicated these personality effects on judgment in the context of manipulated moods (positive, sad, fearful, and neutral). As in Study 1, personality effects on judgment were not mediated by mood states. The authors suggest that the traits of extraversion and neuroticism include stable cognitive structures that can bias judgment in affect-congruent directions.
The authors investigated the allocation of social time to self, family, friends, and pets; they explored the associations between these time allocations and 2 measures of well-being in a group of 173 community-dwelling men and women, 35 to 55 years old. Results indicated that time allocation was strongly related to income, that individuals with high incomes spent more time with family, and that time spent with pets was second only to time spent with family. Time allocations were related to a measure of negative mood for men. Time allocations were independent of positive and negative well-being measures for women, but time spent with pets was related to negative mood in men. The findings are discussed in relation to the emerging importance of income and time use in middle-aged persons.