Sentinels of Safety
From Service Dog Training
Sentinels of Safety: Service Dogs Ensure Safety and Enhance Freedom and Well-Being for Families With Autistic Children
Contents |
Summary
This study used the same sample group as Factors Affecting Behavior and Welfare of Service Dogs for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Challenges of Service-Dog Ownership for Families with Autistic Children: Lessons for Veterinary Practitioners. The goal of the study was “to identify and describe important patterns of behavior in the relationship between service dog, child with autism, and family members, and (b) to draw conclusions about the organization of this behavior and its functional significance.” Data was gathered 6 and 12 months after placement and was collected by observation and interviews of the parents.
Results
-The study identified the dog’s role in safety as the primary function of the autism service dog. The dogs are expected to slow or stop a bolting child, giving the parent more time to respond. In addition, the dogs are expected to alert the parent if the child gets up at night. One parent is quoted describing how she ties her child to the dog so the child cannot resist the dressing process. Parents state that caring for the dog assisted in the development of motor skills as the child learned to feed, play with and pet the dog.
-Parents reported that their children had fewer tantrums when interacting with the dog.
-Parents appreciated the dog’s ability to direct the attention of the public away from the behaviors of the child, resulting in fewer negative comments from the public.
-Parents also mentioned that the presence of a dog in the home was beneficial to their own emotional health in addition to the behavior of their child.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Considering all the papers published on this particular group of participants, this is probably the weakest as it is essentially a collection of anecdotes. It lacks numerical data that would reflect the actual impact of the autism service dog. For instance, the study says that parents reported that the autism service dog aided in motor development, but it does not say how many parents reported this. It could have been one parent, or the entire study group. This study would have benefited from more analysis of the reported data.
Citation
Burrows, K. E., Adams, C. L., & Spiers, J. (2008). Sentinels of Safety: Service Dogs Ensure Safety and Enhance Freedom and Well-Being for Families with Autistic Children. Qualitative Health Research , 1642-1649.
