Research in Human-Animal Interaction
In the fast pace of modern life, humans are experiencing health challenges at an unprecedented rate. Disease as a consequence of lifestyle is now common and is predicted to steadily rise. Obesity, mental illness and physical inactivity are all creating an increasing burden on our economy. Turning this trend around will require new thinking.
Research in public health has shown that restoring our connections with each other and with our environment will have benefits for individual health and for the community as a whole.
We now know that some of the simplest pleasures in our lives are among the most important to our health and wellbeing. Walking in our neighbourhood, interacting with people and animals, enjoying the natural environment have all been shown to play a significant role in supporting physical and mental health.
The simple act of regularly taking a dog for a walk to a local park brings with it opportunities for reconnecting, strengthening communities and increasing trust. The physical aspects help to sustain wellbeing though managing body weight and cardiovascular health.
Pets have been shown to provide considerable health benefits through alleviation of stress, constant companionship, and encouraging play in children. Katcher and Beck wrote in 1996 that pets offer protection against stress and change by their constant nature and the positive feelings and actions they evoke in people. Our access to these simple pursuits can be eroded or enhanced, depending on the regulatory, physical or social environment we find ourselves in.
Finding ways to improve wellbeing through increasing levels of social capital and physical health is a long term goal for public health promotion. The stakes are high: lower levels of social trust have been associated with higher rates of most causes of death, including heart attacks, cancer, stroke, unintentional injury and infant mortality (Kawachi and Berkman 2001).
It may be possible that one way to improve wellbeing has been overlooked. Pets factor highly in the Australian way of life - two thirds of Australian households have some kind of pet - one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world. The links between pets and individual health has been well established. This Symposium will present new research about the links between pets and community wellbeing.
The People, Pets and Planning Symposium aims to explore how we might restore community connections, reduce physical inactivity and improve wellbeing through simple means: planning for people, pets, and public open space.