The effects of service dogs for children with autism spectrum disorder and their caregivers: a cross-sectional study

Kerri E Rodriguez; Mandy Rispoli; Bridgette L Kelleher; Evan L MacLean; Marguerite E O'Haire

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1355970

The effects of service dogs for children with autism spectrum disorder and their caregivers: a cross-sectional study

Front Psychiatry. 2024 Feb 23:15:1355970. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1355970. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Kerri E Rodriguez¹, Mandy Rispoli², Bridgette L Kelleher³, Evan L MacLean¹, Marguerite E O'Haire¹

Affiliations

¹ College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Arizona, Oro Valley, AZ, United States.
² School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, United States.
³ Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States.

Abstract

Introduction: Service dogs are an increasingly popular complementary intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder. However, despite increasing demand, there remains a lack of empirical research on their potential benefits. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of service dogs on children with autism and their caregivers.

Methods: A total of N = 75 families of children with autism were recruited from a non-profit service dog provider in the US, including n = 39 families previously placed with a service dog and n = 36 families engaging in usual care while on the waitlist. Caregivers completed an online survey containing both self- and proxy-report standardized measures of child, caregiver, and family functioning. Linear regressions modeled the relationship between service dog presence and survey outcomes, controlling for relevant child and caregiver covariates.

Results: Results indicated that having a service dog was associated with significantly better child sleep behaviors, including better sleep initiation and duration and less sleep anxiety/co-sleeping with medium effect sizes. However, service dog presence was not significantly related to child withdrawal, negative emotionality, emotional self-control, hyperactivity, irritability, and lethargy with small effect sizes. For caregivers, having a service dog was not significantly related to standardized measures of caregiver strain, sleep disturbance, depression, or the impact of the child's condition on family functioning with small effect sizes. Supplemental matched case-control analyses confirmed these findings.

Discussion: In conclusion, service dogs were found to positively impact sleep behaviors among children with autism, but may not uniformly relate to other areas of child and caregiver wellbeing. Prospective longitudinal designs, larger sample sizes able to detect small effects, and studies that measure sleep using objective methods are needed to build on these findings.

Keywords: animal-assisted intervention; assistance dog; autism spectrum disorder; caregivers; service dog.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This project was funded by the Human-Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI grant no. #HAB19-011), Nestlé Purina PetCare Global Resources, the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI), Pediatrics Project Developmental Team, and the Purdue University Clifford B. Kinley Trust. Nestlé Purina PetCare Global Resources was not involved in the study design, collection, analysis, interpretation of data, the writing of this article, or the decision to submit it for publication.