The DOI matches its Crossref record; 36 of the 38 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Evaluating Animal-Assisted Therapy in Group Treatment for Child Sexual Abuse
Abstract
This study evaluates and compares the effectiveness of three group interventions on trauma symptoms for children who have been sexually abused. All of the groups followed the same treatment protocol, with two of them incorporating variations of animal-assisted therapy. A total of 153 children ages 7 to 17 who were in group therapy at a Child Advocacy Center participated in the study. Results indicate that children in the groups that included therapy dogs showed significant decreases in trauma symptoms including anxiety, depression, anger, post-traumatic stress disorder, dissociation, and sexual concerns. In addition, results show that children who participated in the group with therapeutic stories showed significantly more change than the other groups. Implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“In contrast, two studies [40, 41] indicated that this may be a crucial component of the treatment process.”
From Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: A systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy (2019) · cites this paper as [41]
In the citing paper
“There is some evidence to suggest that AAT, and in particular CAP, is an effective intervention for child and adolescent populations with neurodevelopmental difficulties [31, 32] and trauma symptoms [33, 41].”
From Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: A systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy (2019) · cites this paper as [41]
In the citing paper
“This resulted in further significant improvements to trauma symptoms over and above the groups with canines but no stories, and over treatment as usual (without canines) [41].”
From Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: A systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy (2019) · cites this paper as [41]
In the citing paper
“This is important to explore further, as meaningful integration of canines into the therapeutic process has been shown to increase efficacy [41].”
From Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: A systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy (2019) · cites this paper as [41]
In the citing paper
“Crucially, relevant and meaningful canine-presence that is clearly related to the psychotherapeutic content has been found to have a superior effect to incidental presence [41] and warrants further research.”
From Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: A systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy (2019) · cites this paper as [41]
Citations
Cites
(2018) · فصلنامه علمی پژوهشی توانبخشی · doi:10.21859/jrehab · Cited by 1,975
Briere, J., & Elliott, D. M. (2003) · Child Abuse & Neglect · doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2003.09.008 · Cited by 1,054
Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse by Gender of Victim
DUBE, S., ANDA, R., WHITFIELD, C., BROWN, D., FELITTI, V, DONG, M., & GILES, W. (2005) · American Journal of Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2005.01.015 · Cited by 915
Handbook on animal-assisted therapy. Theoretical foundations and guidelines for practice
Fine, A. H. (2010) · Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) · doi:10.5167/uzh-46614 · Cited by 758
Animal-Assisted Therapy: A Meta-Analysis
Nimer, J., & Lundahl, B. (2007) · Anthrozoös · doi:10.2752/089279307x224773 · Cited by 712
Animal-assisted interventions in mental health
Kruger, K. A., & Serpell, J. A. (2010) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-381453-1.10003-0 · Cited by 378
Pet-Oriented Child Psychotherapy
Levinson, B. M. (1996) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 348
Deblinger, E., McLeer, S. V., & Henry, D. (1990) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1097/00004583-199009000-00012 · Cited by 315
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Sexually Abused Children
McLeer, S. V., Deblinger, E., Atkins, M. S., Foa, E. B., & Ralphe, D. L. (1988) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1097/00004583-198809000-00024 · Cited by 296
Kaminski, M., Pellino, T. A., & Wish, J. (2002) · Children s Health Care · doi:10.1207/s15326888chc3104_5 · Cited by 274
Flagged first, then by citations
2 of the 38 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 101–164 of 164
A Critical Analysis of Service Dogs Within Canine-Assisted Interventions for PTSD
Kiiroja, L., Gadbois, S., & Stewart, S. H. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-00313-3_19 · Cited by 2
The Human–Animal Relationship in Context of the Juvenile and Criminal Justice Systems
Phillips, A. (2015) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-801292-5.00021-3 · Cited by 2
Equine-assisted Therapy: Developing Theoretical Context
Hinds, J., & Ranger, L. (2016) · doi:10.1057/978-1-137-48688-2_15 · Cited by 2
Bruzek, C. E. (2014) · Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida) · Cited by 2
Animal-Assisted Intervention for Trauma, Including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
O’Haire, M. E., Guérin, N. A., Kirkham, A. C., & Daigle, C. L. (2015) · Cited by 2
“Giving voice to the voiceless”: An exploration of the grieving ritual for a therapy dog
McVeigh, M. J. (2022) · Death Studies · doi:10.1080/07481187.2022.2067263 · Cited by 2
“Dietz et al. (2012) found that the presence of a dog in group therapy for children who had been sexually assaulted effectively reduced traumatic symptoms.”
BackgroundLeos, R. A., Cuccaro, P. M., Herbold, J. R., & Hernandez, B. (2023) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare11070963 · Cited by 2
“One study found that treatment involving therapy dogs led to significant decreases in depression, anger, anxiety, and PTSD [5].”
BackgroundUnderstanding Animal Assisted Group Therapy from the College Counselor’s Perspective
Randall, B. M., & Smith‐Adcock, S. (2023) · Journal of Creativity in Mental Health · doi:10.1080/15401383.2023.2234816 · Cited by 2
“Animal-assisted interventions (AAI) in mental health counseling has become increasingly popular over the past decade (Fine et al., 2019; Narvekar, 2021) and has started to gain traction among college counseling centers (Binfet, 2017; Daltry & Mehr, 2015; Dietz et al., 2012).”
BackgroundLa aplicación de la terapia asistida con animales en la salud mental infanto-juvenil
García-Mauriño, P. A., Luz, L. A., Babot, M. A., Lacasa, F., & Segura, M. Á. (2017) · Revista de Psicología Universidad de Antioquia · doi:10.17533/udea.rp.v9n2a11 · Cited by 2
The Meaning and Motivation of Children Participating in Animal-Assisted Therapy: A Pilot Study
Laskowski, B., Winkle, M. Y., & Lucas Molitor, W. (2019) · People and Animals The International Journal of Research and Practice · doi:10.62845/20xlqbx · Cited by 1
“For children who have experienced trauma, group therapy sessions incorporating dogs resulted in a decrease in trauma symptoms, including anxiety and depression (Dietz et al., 2012).”
BackgroundChildren's rights and animal welfare
Šahović, N. V., & Burazerović, E. (2019) · Zbornik radova Pravnog fakulteta Nis · doi:10.5937/zrpfn0-23283 · Cited by 1
The Strength and Conflicts of the Human-Animal Bond in Aotearoa New Zealand
Brown, F., Jones, J., & Ma, S. (2023) · Scope Contemporary Research Topics (Health and Wellbeing) · doi:10.34074/scop.3008012 · Cited by 1
“Animal-assisted therapy has also shown positive results in the treatment of child abuse (Dietz et al., 2012; Parish-Plass, 2008).”
BackgroundChapman, R. L., Baselmans, C., Howell, T. J., Ronken, C. A., & Butler, D. L. (2024) · Children · doi:10.3390/children11081017 · Cited by 1
“However, one of these studies did find that children’s hyperactivity, a subscale of the externalising symptom scale, improved at a greater rate among dog-assisted therapy participants than among the control group [37].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialSantos, I. S., & Sani, A. I. (2025) · Social Sciences · doi:10.3390/socsci14060393 · Cited by 1
Feasibility and Perceived Efficacy of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics
Caplis, C. F. (2014) · OhioLink ETD Center (Ohio Library and Information Network) · Cited by 1
Animal-Assisted Psychotherapy: A Meta-Analytic Review
Germain, S. M., Wilkie, K. D., Milbourne, V. M. K., & Theule, J. (2024) · Society and Animals · doi:10.1163/15685306-bja10186 · Cited by 2
Rocha, C. F. P. G. (2015) · Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (Universidade de São Paulo) · doi:10.11606/d.47.2015.tde-10082015-115539
Human-Animal Relational Theory: A Constructivist-Grounded Theory Investigation
Otting, T. L. (2016) · University of North Texas Digital Library (University of North Texas) · doi:10.12794/metadc955020
Brazdeikienė, L., Zukhbaya, N., & Petraitienė, U. (2017) · Tiltai · doi:10.15181/tbb.v77i2.1603
Physical activity and health: Shifting focus from modern era to Stone Age life style
Mohan, V., & Selvarajan, K. K. (2017) · Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Research · doi:10.15761/pmrr.1000140 · Cited by 1
“Pet-assisted therapy on trauma symptoms for sexually abused children’s have shown to decrease their trauma symptoms such as anxiety, depression, anger, post-traumatic stress disorder, dissociation, and sexual concerns [7].”
BackgroundInterdisciplinary Mental Health Approach to Equine Assisted Therapy for Veterans
Large, E., & Valin, B. V. (2016) · UND Scholarly Commons (University of North Dakota)
A Case Study of a Jail Participating in an Animal-Assisted Crisis Response Program
Schlau, E. (2019) · ScholarWorks - WMU (Western Michigan University)
Hamilton, L. H. A. (2018) · ERA: Education and Research Archive (University of Alberta) · doi:10.7939/r3n29pp3j
An Integrative Review of Interventions for Abused Children
Oh, H.-K., Lee, S., & Park, S. E. (2020) · JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH · doi:10.21896/jksmch.2020.24.2.111
Health Technology Assessment of Assistance Dogs and Dog-Assisted Interventions
Lundqvist, M. (2020) · Linköping University medical dissertations · doi:10.3384/diss.diva-169010
Talley, L. P. (2019) · University of North Texas Digital Library (University of North Texas) · doi:10.12794/metadc1609117
Chapitre 5. Les protocoles d’audition et les outils
Cyr, M. (2019) · Dunod eBooks · doi:10.3917/dunod.cyr.2019.01.0123
The Use of Animal-Assisted Interventions to Treat Child Victims of Sexual Abuse
Johnston, S. C. (2021) · doi:10.33015/dominican.edu/2021.cp.01
“In doing so, “they are likely to relate to [the stories] and connect to the characters and situations in the stories, which can enhance the therapy (Dietz et al., 2012, p. 668).”
BackgroundInfluentialGladding, S. T. (2016) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119291961.refs
Flander, G. B., Štimac, D., Fridrih, R., Raguž, A. B., Kuculo, I., Galić, R., & City of Zagreb Office of Social Protection and Persons with Disabilities, Z. (2019) · Socijalna psihijatrija · doi:10.24869/spsih.2018.413 · Cited by 1
“where stories written from the dogs’ perspectives and related to the topics of therapy were read (12).”
BackgroundInfluentialSupporting grieving children: Dragonfly Dance
Kristinsson, P. (2021) · doi:10.24124/2021/59145
Exploring the effect of a therapy dog in a group for young people experiencing anxiety
Johnston, C., van Huyssteen, S., Grajfoner, D., & Sinclair, J. B. (2022) · Mental Health Practice · doi:10.7748/mhp.2022.e1629
Suicide (Self-Directed Violence) and the Use of Animal-Assisted Interventions
Muela, A., Machimbarrena, J. M., Sansinenea, E., García‐Ormaza, J., & Eguren, A. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-98711-4_109-1
The Law and Psychology of Therapeutic Animals
McDermott, C. M., Marsh, S., Both, S., & Miller, M. K. (2022) · Advances in psychology and law · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-13733-4_9
Psychosocial Treatments: Psychotherapy, Behavioral, and Cultural Interventions
Trujillo, M. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-15401-0_11
Outline of the Problem of Sexual Violence against Children Including STD
Plagens-Rotman, K., Jarząbek‐Bielecka, G., Lorkiewicz‐Muszyńska, D., Przystańska, A., Obrębowska, A., Pawlaczyk, M., Jakubek, E., Mizgier, M., Pisarska-Krawczyk, M., Pawlaczyk, M., et al. (2023) · Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology · doi:10.31083/j.ceog5006117
Állatasszisztált terápia hatékonyságvizsgálata és alkalmazási lehetőségei gyermekeknél
Babos, E. T. (2018) · Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem · doi:10.15476/elte.2017.156
Suicide (Self-Directed Violence) and the Use of Animal-Assisted Interventions
Muela, A., Machimbarrena, J. M., Sansinenea, E., García‐Ormaza, J., & Eguren, A. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-31547-3_109
Dussault, A., & Daignault, I. V. (2023) · doi:10.21428/58a8fd3e.76313b3d
Benefits and Risks of Animal-assisted Interventions in Pediatric Health Care: A Mini Review
Vashe, A., Bernhardt, L. K., Bernhardt, G. V., & Bhat, S. (2023) · Journal of Datta Meghe Institute of Medical Sciences University · doi:10.4103/jdmimsu.jdmimsu_421_23
ผลของการใชกระตายชวยบำบดตอความรสกเหนคณคาในตนเองภาวะซมเศราและความสขของเดกทถกกระทำทารณกรรม
ตันติพิสิฐกุล, แ. (2014) · Chulalongkorn Medical Journal · doi:10.58837/chula.cmj.58.2.7
A META-PERSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF “ANIMAL IMAGES” IN THE PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC PROCESS OF JAPANESE CHILDREN
Suzuki, Y., Hatanaka, C., & Kawai, T. (2024) · PSYCHOLOGIA · doi:10.2117/psysoc.2022-a186
Shapiro, A., Gillen, M., Dixon, B. N., & Fogarty, K. (2024) · American Journal of Qualitative Research · doi:10.29333/ajqr/14395
BİLGİÇ, T. (2024) · BAU Health and Innovation · doi:10.14744/bauh.2024.68077
“[6] Later on, different researchers also proposed a group treatment model for sexually abused children that included play and animal-assisted therapy.”
BackgroundChildren’s stress and inattention during forensic interviews: the role of facility dogs
Côté, É., Cyr, M., & Brillon, P. (2024) · Police Practice and Research · doi:10.1080/15614263.2024.2349028
“…et al., 2010; Vagnoli et al., 2015), as well as during potentially taxing situations, such as dental procedures (Vincent et al., 2020), therapy (Dietz et al., 2012; Jones et al., 2019), cognitive laboratory tasks (Crossman et al., 2020; Kerns et al., 2018; Kertes et al., 2017) and legal…”
Psikiyatri Hemşireliğinde Güncel Yaklaşımlar III
Bayageldi, N. K., Uğur, N., Bakar, D. L., Esmaeilzadeh, S., Yatmaz, G., Beki̇rcan, E., Sevi̇ndi̇k, S. T., Akbeniz, A., Tarım, H. Ş., Ertem, Ü., et al. (2024) · Akademisyen Kitabevi eBooks · doi:10.37609/akya.3203
Incorporating Animals into Psychotherapy
Fine, A. H., & Hediger, K. (2024) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-443-22346-4.00008-1
Bugni, B. R. (2022) · University of North Texas Digital Library (University of North Texas) · doi:10.12794/metadc1944216
Equine-Assisted Interventions for Youth with Anxiety
Acri, M. C., Vincent, A., Morrissey, M. A., Seibel, L. F., & Hoagwood, K. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-74426-6_12
Gladding, S. T. (2025) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781394347353.ref
Arnskötter, W., Martin, S., Walitza, S., & Hediger, K. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.24953133
Dumouchel, A., & Soubelet, A. (2026) · Neuropsychiatrie de l Enfance et de l Adolescence · doi:10.1016/j.neurenf.2025.12.002
Rehabilitation Process and Effective Organizations for Early Childhood Sexual Abuse
Taşkaya, V., & Tuzcuoğlu, N. (2026) · Turkish Journal of Educational Studies · doi:10.33907/turkjes.1727250
Hill, J. R., & Williams, B. (2026) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-443-40596-9.00001-4
Ashoorion, V., Cooley, K., Scelleur, H. L., Selvadurai, S., & Sud, A. (2026) · Journal of Military Veteran and Family Health · doi:10.3138/jmvfh-2025-0068
Clinicians’ Perspectives on the Use of Robotic Dogs in Therapy for Child Sexual Abuse
Reyneke, T. B., Howell, T. J., Chapman, R. L., Ronken, C. A., & Butler, D. L. (2026) · Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma · doi:10.1007/s40653-026-00907-1
Reeson, M., Pazderka, H., Polzin, W., Wei, Y., Greenshaw, A., & Silverstone, P. H. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0354692
“…have shown evidence for improved treatment outcomes, including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) [20], art and expressive therapies [21], animal-assisted therapy [22], recreational and play therapy [23], psychosocial interventions [24], and structure therapeutic milieu [25].”
Animals in the Primary School Classroom
IOANNİDOU, G., & F.PAPAVASİLEİOU, V. (2026) · IGI Global eBooks · doi:10.4018/979-8-3373-9420-6.ch003
Animal-Assisted Interactions: Impacts for At-Risk Youth
Axen, E. M. (2015) · UST Research Online (University of St. Thomas - Minnesota)
Metadata
- Authors
- Dietz, T. J., Davis, D., & Pennings, J.
- Affiliations
- Texas Christian University (US)
- Alliance for Children
- Elite Research
- Corresponding author
- Dietz, Tracy J.
- ORCID
- Pennings, Jacquelyn
- Venue
- Journal of Child Sexual Abuse
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2012-11
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 665-683
- ISSN
- 1053-8712 (ISSN-L)
- 1547-0679
- OpenAlex
- W2015915867
- Cited by
- 165
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 20 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 4
- FWCI
- 5.79
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Child Sexual Abuse (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Human-Animal Interaction Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Therapy and Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Keywords
- animal-assisted therapy, therapy dogs, child sexual abuse, group therapy, trauma symptoms, post-traumatic stress disorder, dissociation, anxiety, depression, anger, sexual concerns, therapeutic stories, child advocacy centers, children
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adolescent Behavior, Animals, Human-Animal Bond, Child, Child Abuse, Sexual, Child Behavior, Dogs, Female, Humans, Male, Psychotherapy, Group, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, United States, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Treatment Outcome, Animal Assisted Therapy
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
