AART: Animal-assisted Resilience Training for Children With Stressful Life Events or Autism Spectrum Disorder
Study Details
Study Description
Brief Summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn about the effects of an animal-assisted resilience training in children who experienced stressful life events or who have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. The main question it aims to answer is:
• Is an animal-assisted resilience training a feasible approach to increase resilience in children with a history of stressful life events or a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder?
Participants will take part in 12 training sessions of a standardized resilience training. The training is group-based, takes place outdoors, and includes interactions with different animals. It focuses on self-esteem, self-perception, dealing with emotions, and social competence.
| Condition or Disease | Intervention/Treatment | Phase |
|---|---|---|
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N/A |
Study Design
Arms and Interventions
| Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
|---|---|
| Experimental: Animal-assisted resilience training 12 sessions of group-based, animal-assisted resilience training. |
Behavioral: Animal-assisted resilience training
Participants take part in 12 sessions (120 minutes each), each session focuses on a topic that is related to resilience. The intervention takes part outdoors on a farm, and includes interactions with several different animals. The training takes place in small groups, and includes exercises, observations, and discussions.
|
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcome Measures
- Questionnaire on resources in childhood and adolescence [18 weeks]
Pre-to-post assessment changes in resilience
Secondary Outcome Measures
- Questionnaire to assess emotion regulation in children and adolescents [18 weeks]
Pre-to-post assessment changes in emotion regulation
- Number of attendend sessions [12 weeks]
Number of attended sessions over the course of the training
- Feeling secure and motivation to participate as measured on a 0-10 scale [12 weeks]
Motivation and feeling secure as measured at the beginning and end of each session
- Intervention satisfaction as assessed in semi-structured interview [18 weeks (follow-up)]
Satisfaction with program content and structure, as measured by qualitative interview
- Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) [18 weeks]
Pre-to-post assessment changes in peer-relationship problems and prosocial behavior measures
Eligibility Criteria
Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
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Age between 2 and 4 years (toddler group) or 8 and 12 years (children group)
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History of at least one stressful life event experience OR diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder
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Basic knowledge of either German or English of parents and child to follow the instructions during the training sessions and completion of interviews.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Medical contraindications for contact with animals, such as allergies or phobia
Contacts and Locations
Locations
| Site | City | State | Country | Postal Code | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Basel | Basel | Switzerland | 4055 |
Sponsors and Collaborators
- University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
Investigators
None specified.Study Documents (Full-Text)
None provided.More Information
Publications
None provided.- Resilience training