The Psychology of the Human-Animal Bond: A Resource for Clinicians and Researchers - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1461461960 ISBN 13: 9781461461968

Publisher: Springer, 2012

Synopsis

Written for practicing and emerging professionals, this introduction provides an essential framework for understanding the human-animal bond. Topics include attachment and loss, success and frustration with making and sustaining connections, world views regarding animal ethics, and more.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

The Psychology of the Human-Animal Bond

A Resource for Clinicians and Researchers

Chris Blazina, Guler Boyraz, and David N. Shen-Miller

Since the domestication of dogs and cats thousands of years ago, the connection between humans and animals has been complex and evolving.Today, it is a significant area of psychological study, and of practice in areas as diverse as animal-assisted therapy and pet bereavement counseling. The Psychology of the Human-Animal Bond offers a contextual framework for understanding the dynamics of this elemental relationship, both in the larger society and on the client level. An international panel of scholars and clinicians from across psychology (as well as from philosophy, literature, and other disciplines outside mental health)explores topics that will help professionals deepen their understanding of the human-animal relationship, translate this insight to practice, and consider questions of identity, attachment, and ethics.

In topics ranging from the universal (health benefits of pet ownership) to the timely (the exploitation of fighting dogs), the reader gains perspective on the numerous factors that influence the bond between humans and animals, and the ways in which the bond reflects our own challenges as humans. Key areas of coverage include:

• Cultural and contextual issues.
• Psychological aspects of attachment and well-being.
• Bereavement, loss, and disenfranchised grief.
• Animal rights, abuse, and neglect.
• Tests, measurements, current research issues,and future directions.

The Psychology of the Human-Animal Bond fills a unique and vital niche, and will be of great interest and practical use to psychologists, clinical social workers, and rehabilitation professionals such as physical and occupational therapists.

About the Author:

Christopher Blazina, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist, researcher, and professor of psychology. He received his doctorate in counseling psychology from the University of North Texas. He has been a faculty member at the University of Houston and Tennessee State University, training graduate students to become counselors and psychologists. Currently, he is a professor of psychology at New Mexico State University. The author of more than forty articles and five books, Dr. Blazina has presented his recent research on the human-animal bond at conferences that include the American Psychological Association. David S. Shen-Miller, Ph.D. received his doctorate in counseling psychology from the University of Oregon. He is an assistant professor at Tennessee State University in the counseling psychology program and also engages in individual, couples, and group counseling and psychological testing. He has authored peer reviewed articles, book chapters, and more than 30 regional, national, and international presentations. He is a co-editor with Dr. Chris Blazina on the upcoming book An International Psychology of Men: Theoretical Advances, Case Studies, and Clinical Innovations, scheduled to be published by Routledge Press in 2010.Guler Boyraz, Ph.D. received her doctorate in counseling psychology from the University of Memphis. She is an assistant professor of counseling psychology at Tennessee State University. Her research focuses on attachment and loss, psychological resilience in the face of adverse life events, and gender roles and relationships across different cultures. In addition to the research awards she received during her doctoral training, she was awarded the Burl Gilliland Award for an outstanding doctoral student for two years in a row. She has published journal and newsletter articles, technical reports, and more than 25 peer-reviewed presentations.

About this edition

• Publisher: Springer
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1461461960
• ISBN 13: 9781461461968
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 443
• Editor: Christopher Blazina, Güler Boyraz, David Shen-Miller