Ms. Erin K. King will be presenting the results of her doctoral research in partial fulfillment of her PhD dissertation defense; mentor, Dr. Megan Mueller. Her talk is titled, “Exploring Contexts of Human-Animal Interaction: Adapting the Socio-Ecological Model to Human Relationships with Companion Animals”.

The presentation will take place on Friday, March 7^th from 12:00 P.M. to 1:00 P.M.
In-person:  Hamilburg Lecture Hall (HLH).
The Zoom link is available via email.

Presentation Abstract:

Research in the field of human-animal interaction (HAI) has increasingly recognized the potential benefits of companion animal relationships, suggesting that companion animals can contribute to human psychological, social, and physical well-being. Given that approximately 82 million households in the United States share their homes with companion animals (APPA, 2024), it is important to understand the nuanced relationships humans have with their pets to maximize potential health outcomes for both people and animals. Current theoretical models used to understand HAI often account for individual level relationships with pets but frequently do not incorporate the importance of family and community context surrounding these relationships.

This presentation will explore an adaptation to the Socio-Ecological Model (SEM), a conceptual framework that explores the relationships between individuals and various layers of interacting factors, including interpersonal, community, and societal levels. Utilizing youth and parent data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, this work analyzes relationships between emotion regulation and peer victimization among youth with and without pets. Results show that non-pet owners have higher levels of both maladaptive and adaptive emotion regulation. Next, this work investigates how companion animals may impact social cohesion in the family and community sphere, with results indicating that pets play a role in community social cohesion, regardless of community resources. Finally, this presentation will explore the societal-level factors influencing access to veterinary care for pets and their owners. Results show that race/ethnicity, education, and financial fragility are significant predictors of perceived veterinary access, underscoring the importance of adopting a more critical perspective to address inequities in pet care.

Committee Chair: Dr. Allen Rutberg

Committee Members:
Dr. Megan Mueller (mentor)
Dr. Emily McCobb
Dr. Thomas Stopka
Dr. Sara Johnson
Dr. Christine Tardif-Williams