A scoping review of research on human-canine interactions to reduce loneliness and promote socializing behaviors in early and middle adulthood

Abstract

Feelings of loneliness affect emotional and physical health and wellbeing. With more individuals experiencing pervasive and chronic loneliness than ever before, strategies that reduce feelings of loneliness and promote pro-social behaviors are needed. Human-canine interactions may meet this need. The objective of this scoping review was to examine the extent, range, and nature of research activity pertaining to human-canine interactions to address loneliness and socialization in early and middle-aged adults and identify what gaps remain for future research to address. Relevant databases and journals were searched for studies on this topic. Based on inclusion criteria, 21 articles were included in the review. Findings suggest that human-canine interactions may decrease feelings of loneliness and increase socializing behaviors. However, the results are not broadly generalizable due to a lack of diverse and representative participant samples. Future research should evaluate the impacts of human-canine interactions on the feelings of loneliness and socialization on larger and more diverse populations and identify mechanisms of change.

Keywords

• Adults
• Human-canine interactions
• Canine-assisted therapy
• Companion dog
• Loneliness
• Service dog