Green care: Effects of animals and plants on the farm in a therapeutic process for people with psychiatric diseases

Ane Skjelfjord

This research proposal aims to document effects of farm-based activities (farm animals and plants), called Green care, on adult mental health and various psychiatric diagnoses. Lack of qualitative scientific studies indicates an urgent need for such projects.

Project leader: Bjarne O. Braastad
Post doc: Bente Berget
PhD student: Ingeborg Pedersen

NRC project, in co-operation with: UMB - Institutt for plante- og miljøvitenskap, Universitetet i Oslo, Uppsala Universitet - IBF, Modum Bad forskningsinstituttet, Rådet for psykisk helse, Norges Bondelag, Wageningen University - Inst. of Animal Science, Sosial- og helsedirektoratet

Life quality, self-esteem and coping ability
A three months intervention study with psychiatric validated inventories will assess life quality, self-esteem, coping ability, affects and characteristic symptoms of different psychiatric diagnoses. It will be investigated by video analyses to what extent patients develop attachment to and caring for animals and plants, and whether the intervention affects relations to other people. The motivations of patients and therapists to participate in Green care programs will be studied to reduce dropout frequency, making such programs more predictable for the farmer.

Animal-assisted and horticultural therapies
The intervention study will be designed as a randomised, controlled study with separate groups of patients in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) and horticultural therapy (HT), and a control group. Each patient will work on a farm three hours twice a week for 12 weeks. Questionnaires will be answered at various times during and after the intervention. Separate questionnaires for the farmers and the therapists involved will be used.

Experience and participants
The project draws on experience from a preceding doctoral project on AAT. It will strengthen the priority area on human health issues at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB), and also development of multidisciplinary educational programs. Further, it will be an important contribution to a European COST Action on Green care in agriculture. Apart from UMB, the project involves University of Oslo, Uppsala University and Modum Bad, and includes two PhD students in AAT and HT and one postdoctoral fellow. The project comprises an interdisciplinary approach viz., ethology, horticulture, psychiatry and environmental psychology.

Forskdok key words: green care, farm animals, plants, ethology, horticulture, psychiatry, psychology, cattle, cow

Forskdok emneord: grønn omsorg, dyr, planter, etologi, plantevitenskap, psykiatri, psykologi, storfe, ku

Oppdatert: 07.03.06
Utskriftsvennlig versjon : Arkiv : Tips en venn