Methodology
In this study, the focus will be on engage children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) during their interactions with their pets, specifically cats. Taking into account that the study seeks to examine the benefits associated with pet therapy, it would be essential to embark on a research in which children with ASD are selected as human subjects. The study seeks to use between 10 and 15 children with ASD, which will help in giving an accurate picture of the effectiveness of pet therapy to help in the management of autism. The children selected for the study will range in age, which will help in giving a clear indication of whether indeed the use pets as part of therapy would be effective at different ages. Regarding the duration of the study, the children will be engaged in the study for a maximum period of two weeks during which time all relevant data will be recorded.
Extraneous Variables
The study will focus on two main extraneous variables. The first variable is the autistic children facing developmental delays, which are affecting their abilities to cope with their immediate social environments. Denzer-Weilera & Hrehab (2018) describe autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as a wide array of developmental disorders seen among younger children. The autistic children will be considered as dependent variables to help meet the expected objectives of the study. The second variable that the study will consider is a pet, which in this case is a cat. The cat will be considered as the independent variable as part of the study. The main expectation when using a pet in dealing with autistic children is that it will help provide them with reactions that are similar to what humans have when they interact with animals (David, Iván, Claudia, & Gutiérrez, 2018). In this case, the study seeks to evaluate the interactions that the children have with the cat.
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Instruments
The main instrument that will be considered as part of this study is the cat. The cat will be used as an instrument to determine whether pet therapy is likely to be beneficial for the children in terms of improving their abilities to engage and interact, especially when focusing on actions that include laughing, smiling, talking, caressing, and touching among others. The validity of the cat can be seen from the fact that the study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of using pets as part of therapy, where the cat is considered as the pet.
Description of the Intervention
The study will seek to adopt an intervention in which the children are exposed to pets with the sole focus being towards boosting their abilities to build emotional and educational effectiveness. During the interactions with pets, children with ASD are much more likely to show emotions and learning capabilities, which is reflective of the benefits associated with the use of pet therapy. The intention of the study is to create an environment in which the children are able to learn how to cope with their immediate social environments through their interactions with pets.
Data Collection Procedures
The subjects, selected for the study, will be evaluated before their interactions with the pets and the data thoroughly analyzed to determine their emotional and learning effectiveness. The subjects will be equally evaluated during their interactions with the pets through observation to determine whether they are showing any form of emotions or learning capabilities. The researcher will tabulate and graph the data to help ease the data analysis process to determine whether the subjects’ interactions with pets may have had any notable impacts.
References
David, J., Iván, C.-S., Claudia, P., & Gutiérrez, T. (2018). Animal-assisted therapy in adults: A systematic review. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 32 (1), 169-180. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.06.011
Denzer-Weilera, C., & Hrehab, K. (2018). The use of animal-assisted therapy in combination with physical therapy in an inpatient rehabilitation facility: A case report. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 32 (1), 139-144. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.06.007.
