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The Horse Weaves Magic Parents and Service Providers on the Benefits of Horse-Based Therapies for Autistic Children an Australian Qualitative Study1.60 MB
Published VersionCC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
‘The Horse Weaves Magic’: Parents and Service Providers on the Benefits of Horse-Based Therapies for Autistic Children—an Australian Qualitative Study
Issues in Mental Health Nursing, Vol.45(11), pp.1201-1209
2024
PMID: 39110870
Abstract
Autistic children and adolescents experience a range of co-morbidities, including diagnoses of mental illness. Animal-assisted therapies have advanced rapidly over recent years as an effective and accessible intervention for autistic children and adolescents with various health issues. Horses offer a unique opportunity for interaction as the young person can physically ride the animal, thus creating a therapy with different physical interactions from other animals. This qualitative study had two main aims: first, to understand parents’ experiences of their autistic child’s involvement with horse-based therapies; and second, to understand the experiences of the staff of organisations offering horse-based therapies to those on the autism spectrum. Twelve interviews were conducted with six parents across four interviews (four mothers and two fathers), and eight staff of equine therapy services in eight individual interviews, to understand their perceptions of the child’s experience with horse riding and the perceived mental health impacts. Three emergent themes were prominent among parents and service providers alike: physical and social benefits, including health, self-management skills and social skills; protecting mental health; and recommendations for improvements and accessibility of horse-based therapies. Specifically, service providers with long-standing associations with horse-based therapies saw the actual and potential benefits of horse-based therapies for autistic children, particularly in promoting happiness, calm, resilience, and good mental health.
Details
- Title
- ‘The Horse Weaves Magic’: Parents and Service Providers on the Benefits of Horse-Based Therapies for Autistic Children—an Australian Qualitative Study
- Authors
- Michelle Cleary (Corresponding Author) - Central Queensland UniversitySancia West - Central Queensland UniversityRachel Kornhaber - Charles Sturt UniversityColleen Johnston-Devin - Central Queensland UniversityDeependra Kaji Thapa - The University of SydneyLoyola McLean - The University of SydneyCatherine Hungerford - Central Queensland University
- Publication details
- Issues in Mental Health Nursing, Vol.45(11), pp.1201-1209
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis Inc.
- Date published
- 2024
- DOI
- 10.1080/01612840.2024.2367156
- ISSN
- 1096-4673; 0161-2840
- PMID
- 39110870
- Copyright note
- © 2024 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
- Grant note
- Partially funded by the 2023 CQUniversity Internal Research Grants Round 2 RSH/6793.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Health - Nursing
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991148238902621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web Of Science research areas
- Nursing
- Psychiatry
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