The aim of this quasi-experimental study was to determine if participation in an equine-assisted therapy program (EAT) would increase the psychological well-being of children exposed to problematic parental substance use (PPSU). Children exposed to PPSU often experience negative developmental outcomes, including social and emotional difficulties. The EAT program was designed to address these concerns.
The horse in EAT acts as a co-therapist, with whom children learn to establish a mutually respectful, trusting relationship. Related therapy goals typically focus on increasing self-esteem and personal confidence, building trust, improving communication and interpersonal effectiveness, understanding boundaries and limit setting, and developing group cohesion.
Five therapeutic groups were included in this study with group sizes ranging from 5 to 10 child participants. Parents nominated their child for the program on the basis that their child was experiencing social problems, low self-esteem and emotional and behavioral disturbances. The children were between the ages of 7 and 13, were typically developing, and had been exposed to PPSU.
The children's parents and teachers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire(SDQ) before and after the children participated in the 12-week intervention program. The SDQ assesses five aspects of child behavior: prosocial, hyperactivity, conduct disorder, emotional sensitivity, and peer problem behavior.
Reports completed by the parents indicated that children's difficult behavior decreased significantly from before to after participating in the program. Parents also reported a significant reduction in children's emotional problems. While teachers' reports did not indicate a decrease in children's total difficult behavior, they did observe a significant reduction in children's hyperactive behavior. Parents, too, noted a decrease in hyperactivity, along with a reduction in attention difficulties. Children's peer problem behaviors decreased and their prosocial behaviors increased; but these changes were non-significant.
The reductions in children's problematic emotional behaviors and hyperactivity are consistent with findings from the few other studies in this field and add some support for the use of equine-assisted therapeutic programs for children with emotional and behavioral difficulties.
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