Animal Assisted therapy

PERS 2002 Animal-Assisted Therapy – The Human-Animal Bond and Its Impact on Public Health

PURPOSE: Animal-assisted therapy is an emerging field in the mental health profession. Research indicates that animal-assisted therapy provides physical, physiological, and psychological health benefits to our health and well-being. The purpose of this midterm is to explain and reflect upon the role animals play in humans’ lives and to discuss effective animal-assisted therapy programs and the benefits to specific populations.
TASK: is to compose an essay that gives a review of the following information:
1. The history of animal-assisted therapy;
2. Health benefits (physical, physiological, and psychological) of animal companionship and
animal-assisted therapy;
3. Populations which can especially benefit from animal-assisted therapy (who and why)
4. Successful animal-assisted therapy programs in the United States (discuss three programs)
pertaining to canine and equine therapy;
5. Types of animals that are used in animal-assisted therapy, including temperaments that are
needed for each type of animal to be a successful therapy animal;
6. Ethical issues that are addressed for professionals, participants, and animals.
7. Discuss a specific area of interest for you in animal-assisted therapy. Explain your area of
interest, why it is of interest to you, what populations can benefit from your area of interest, and in what ways populations can benefit from your specific area of interest.
FORMAT: The midterm exam should be written using the following format:
1. Length: 8 typed pages (Page 1 –Title Page; Pages 2-7 (Content of Essay); Page 8 (Reference Page)
2. Spacing: double-spaced
3. Margins: 1-inch margins (left, right, top bottom)
4. Font: Times New Roman 12-point
5. References: A minimum of four references are required (one can be textbook). References
should be recorded on reference page using MLA format.
6. Writing Style: MLA
7. Grading Rubric: Refer to grading rubric for grading details
8. Post: Post public questions on the Ask Your Professor Discussion Section of the discussion
board for the benefit of other students who may have the same question.
9. Submission: Must be submitted correctly as a Microsoft Word document by the deadline on the class calendar. There will be no makeups for a missed midterm exam unless there is
an officially documented emergency. In which case, the student must contact and provide to the professor official documentation of said emergency. In addition, if professor determines that the midterm can be made up, a deadline submission for the makeup work must be arranged at that time as well.