Associations Between Pet Ownership, Posttraumatic Growth, and Stress Symptoms in Adolescents

Abstract

ABSTRACT Posttraumatic Growth (PTG) is the positive changes a person may experience due to the struggle with a highly stressful life event. One of the predictors of PTG is social support, and support from various sources have been shown to help foster growth. Pets have also been shown to provide feelings of social support and to reduce feelings of stress. Despite this, no studies to date have examined the association between pets and PTG. This study examined the relationship between owning and spending time with pets and PTG and stress symptoms in adolescents (M age = 17 years) who experienced at least one stressful life event. PTG was assessed using a modified PTG Inventory, and stress symptoms were assessed using the revised version of the Impact of Events Scale. Having pets did not explain PTG or stress symptoms. However, spending more time with pets positively correlated with higher growth scores in the Relating to Others PTG domain. It appears that for adolescents, spending more time with pets corresponds with higher growth in the domain of PTG that is associated with relationships, possibly due to social support garnered from interacting with pets or from pets prompting interactions that foster perceptions of support from others. Future studies should examine if species of pet, number of pets, the relationship between pet and owner, or the nature of pet interactions influences perceptions of growth, as well as assessing perceptions of support from pets and the possibility of distinct pathways to each domain of PTG.