TY - JOUR
T1 - The ‘pet effect’ and trans people
T2 - Associations between living with animal companions and wellbeing, social support, and trans-related marginalization in three international studies
AU - Grey, Georgia E.
AU - Treharne, Gareth J.
AU - Riggs, Damien W.
AU - Fuller, Kimberly A.
AU - Taylor, Nik
AU - Fraser, Heather
PY - 2023/7/15
Y1 - 2023/7/15
N2 - Background: The love, joy and sense of connection between humans and animal companions can bring shared health benefits. Often this is referred to as the ‘pet effect’. Previous research on the ‘pet effect’ suggests that living with an animal companion, and especially one who is considered part of the family, can increase human wellbeing, though to date research has rarely focused on trans people and the ‘pet effect’. Aims: This article explores the ‘pet effect’ in the lives of trans people, given that trans people may uniquely benefit from animal companionship as a counter to the negative effects of living in cisgenderist contexts. Methods: A secondary analysis of three studies was undertaken (N = 857 participants residing in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, the UK or the US). Studies included measures of psychological distress, human social support, and trans-related discrimination, with all participants being asked if they lived with animals and if so, if they considered animals to be part of the family. Results: Trans-related marginalization explained the greatest amount of variance in psychological distress (β =.398, p =.001), with social support (β = −0.198, p =.001), living with animals (β =.149, p =.001), and animals being part of the family (β = 0.196, p =.001) explaining additional variance. Age (β = −0.322, p =.001) and employment status (β =.147, p =.001) were the only demographic variables that explained variance in psychological distress among participants who lived with animals considered part of the family. Discussion: The findings suggest that animal companions make a unique contribution to the wellbeing of trans people. The article concludes by exploring implications of these findings for future research and practice with regard to the ‘pet effect’ and trans people.
AB - Background: The love, joy and sense of connection between humans and animal companions can bring shared health benefits. Often this is referred to as the ‘pet effect’. Previous research on the ‘pet effect’ suggests that living with an animal companion, and especially one who is considered part of the family, can increase human wellbeing, though to date research has rarely focused on trans people and the ‘pet effect’. Aims: This article explores the ‘pet effect’ in the lives of trans people, given that trans people may uniquely benefit from animal companionship as a counter to the negative effects of living in cisgenderist contexts. Methods: A secondary analysis of three studies was undertaken (N = 857 participants residing in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, the UK or the US). Studies included measures of psychological distress, human social support, and trans-related discrimination, with all participants being asked if they lived with animals and if so, if they considered animals to be part of the family. Results: Trans-related marginalization explained the greatest amount of variance in psychological distress (β =.398, p =.001), with social support (β = −0.198, p =.001), living with animals (β =.149, p =.001), and animals being part of the family (β = 0.196, p =.001) explaining additional variance. Age (β = −0.322, p =.001) and employment status (β =.147, p =.001) were the only demographic variables that explained variance in psychological distress among participants who lived with animals considered part of the family. Discussion: The findings suggest that animal companions make a unique contribution to the wellbeing of trans people. The article concludes by exploring implications of these findings for future research and practice with regard to the ‘pet effect’ and trans people.
KW - animal companions
KW - psychological distress
KW - social connectedness
KW - trans people
KW - trans-related discrimination
KW - wellbeing
KW - ‘pet effect’
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85165368917&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://purl.org/au-research/grants/ARC/FT130100087
U2 - 10.1080/26895269.2023.2234383
DO - 10.1080/26895269.2023.2234383
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85165368917
SN - 2689-5269
SP - 1
EP - 10
JO - International Journal of Transgender Health
JF - International Journal of Transgender Health
ER -