Human-Animal Interactions, Relationships and Bonds: A Review and Analysis of the Literature

Geoff Hosey,Vicky Melfi

doi:10.46867/ijcp.2014.27.01.01

Abstract

The study of human-animal interactions (HAI), and the resulting human-animal relationships (HARs) and bonds (HABs) which are set up as a consequence, is currently a topical issue in comparative psychology. Here we review the HAI/HAR/HAB literature to detect the main publication trends, and to identify the predominant research themes in this area. Research in HAI/HAR/HAB only really started in the 1980s, but since then there has been a growth in studies which is still continuing. Most of these studies have been in the contexts of companion animal or agricultural animal research, but there is now a growing literature on laboratory, zoo and wild animals too. In the companion animal HAI/HAB literature the greatest emphasis has been on Animal-assisted Interventions (AAI), and the benefits to people of pet ownership and interaction with pets. Agricultural HAI/HAR research, on the contrary, has been more concerned with the welfare consequences of HAI/HARs to the animals. This disjunction is reflected in the preference of companion animal researchers to use the term ‘bond’, but agricultural researchers to use ‘relationship’. Other themes prominent in the literature include methodological issues, the characteristics of caretakers, the role of veterinarians, sociological approaches, and theoretical aspects. It is concluded that currently HAI/HAR/HAB research does not constitute a unified field, and there is a need to: i) agree and define a standard terminology; ii) undertake more research on the effects of HAI on companion animals; iii) undertake more research on the form and frequency of interactions; and iv) increase research on HAI/HAR/HABs in laboratory, zoo and wild-living animals. This research is important to understand whether HAI has positive, neutral or negative consequences, both for humans and for animals.

Highlights

The study of human-animal interactions (HAI), and the resulting human-animal relationships (HARs) and bonds (HABs) which are set up as a consequence, is currently a topical issue in comparative psychology
Research in HAI/HAR/human-animal bonds (HABs) only really started in the 1980s, but since there has been a growth in studies which is still continuing
The literature searches, after duplicates and 2013 papers were removed, yielded 329 papers. In principle these are all about either HAIs, HARs or HABs, but, in keeping with the wide, multidisciplinary nature of this area, they revealed a variety of approaches, background disciplines, and subject animals

Summary

Introduction

The study of human-animal interactions (HAI), and the resulting human-animal relationships (HARs) and bonds (HABs) which are set up as a consequence, is currently a topical issue in comparative psychology. This hypothesis has been widely applied, for example in interpreting the health benefits that come from connecting with nature (Maller, Townsend, Pryor, Brown, & St Leger, 2006), children’s responses to pets and the natural world (Fawcett & Gullone, 2001; Kahn, 1997), and the enjoyment people gain from visits to the zoo (Fraser, Gruber, & Condon, 2007) This whole area concerning our relationships with and attitudes towards animals constitutes a field of study usually referred to as Human-Animal Studies, which “explores the spaces that animals occupy in human social and cultural worlds and the interactions humans have with them” (de Mello, 2012). Within this field de Mello (2012) distinguishes ‘anthrozoology’ as the “scientific study of human-animal interaction, and the human-animal bond”

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