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Animals, Empathy, and Violence

Can Animals Be Used to Convey Principles of Prosocial Behavior to Children?

Appalachian State University

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a school-based violence prevention/intervention and character education program that uses rescued shelter dogs to teach antiviolence and prosocial messages to elementary and middle school students. This study uses student self-report, disciplinary data, and teacher observational data to measure violent and aggressive behaviors, beliefs about aggression, and levels of empathy in program participants before and after exposure to the program's curriculum. Findings indicate that receiving the program significantly alters students' normative beliefs about aggression, levels of empathy, and displays of violent and aggressive behaviors.

Key Words: violence • aggression • empathy • animal-assisted programs

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