Pets and Lifestyle

Research Paper # 103571

Biology > Zoology
Psychology > Social
Research Designs

Pets and Lifestyle

This paper is a research project to study the relationship of pet ownership and a healthier lifestyle and life-satisfaction.

920 words () | 3 sources | APA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper states that the hypothesis for this study is that pet owners would have a healthier lifestyle and a higher life-satisfaction rating than non-owners. The author reports that the participants of this study consisted of a group of 100 students who elected to take this survey for class credit. The author relates that the results of this study did not support this hypothesis suggesting that there was no significant relationship between pet ownership and lifestyle choices or life-satisfaction. The paper concludes that the reason this study contradicts previous studies, which revealed a positive relationship between pet ownership, health, and well-being, is that the sample was young, lived with other people and was not random.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Method
Participants
Materials
Procedure
Results
Figure. Correlation of Pet Ownership and Life-Satisfaction
Discussion

From the Paper:

"To gather data for this study, an online survey was prepared and put on the SONA Systems website. This survey consisted of several multiple-choice questions regarding pet ownership, health, and lifestyle choices. The survey also asked for demographic information, such as age and gender. One example question is "how would you rate your life-satisfaction?" And the responses available included: very satisfied, fairly satisfied, unsure, fairly unsatisfied, and very unsatisfied. The same format was used to ask questions regarding behaviors such as smoking, drinking, and fast food intake."

Sample of Sources Used:

Sable, P. (1995). Pets, attachment, and well-being across the life cycle. Social Work, 40(3), 334-341.
Staats, S. (2006). Teachers' pets and why they have them: an investigation of the human-animal bond. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 36(8), 1881- 1891.
Towers, R. (2006). Pet companionship and depression: Results from a United States internet sample. Anthrozoos, 19 (1), 50-64.