Exploring the Impact of Animal Assisted Activities on overall Well-being, Stress, and Mindful Awareness

Abstract

Human-animal interactions have emerged as a promising intervention for improving mental health. Although several studies examined the impact of human-dog interactions on mental health, limited studies examined the psychological outcomes of human-donkey interactions. Hence, this study aims to examine the impact of human-donkey interactions on stress, mental health, mindful awareness, and other potential psychological outcomes. A total of six participants were recruited to take part in the quantitative phase, while only two of them were involved in the qualitative phase. They participated in an intervention involving interactions with donkeys in Snowdonia. Perceived stress, mindful awareness, and mental wellbeing were measured using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scales (WEMWBS). The paired sample t-test demonstrated insignificant differences in the MAAS and PSS scores pre- and post-intervention. However, there were significant differences in the scores of WEMWBS. The results show improvement in mental health following the intervention. Five themes emerged: connection, mental refreshment, mild anxiety at the beginning, improved wellbeing in general and satisfaction of social needs and connectedness. Therapists are recommended to incorporate human-donkey interactions into their clinical practice. Longitudinal studies are needed to examine psychological outcomes in the long term.