Tecnologias assistivas computacionais, ou Alta Tecnologia Assistiva (ATA) não podem prescindir de customização para atender efetivamente pessoas com deficiência nas atividades de vida diária e em terapia de reabilitação. Hoje, tais tecnologias são ofertadas de forma padronizada, cabendo aos terapeutas adaptarem-nas para que seus pacientes possam usá-las. O design participativo (DP), como metodologia de envolvimento ativo do usuário no processo de projeto, adequa-se bem à ideia de customização de ATAs, permitindo a participação ativa do usuário com deficiência como co-designer da sua solução. Apesar disso, são raros os estudos que apresentam recomendações para o DP incluindo esses usuários. Quando se considera métodos de DP para incluir pessoas com deficiência, independentemente da deficiência apresentada, nenhum trabalho de pesquisa foi localizado. Visando preencher essa lacuna, esta pesquisa tem o objetivo de propor o PD4CAT Participatory Design for Customized Assistive Technology, método que objetiva auxiliar equipes multidisciplinares a conceberem soluções computacionais customizadas utilizando o DP para o envolvimento ativo da equipe - que inclui a pessoa com deficiência, seus terapeutas e cuidadores - no ciclo de design e desenvolvimento. A metodologia adotada neste trabalho para obter a proposta do PD4CAT foi a pesquisa-ação, em dois ciclos que inseriram os pesquisadores em instituições de reabilitação. Neste processo, foram realizados dois estudos de caso de desenvolvimento de ATAs personalizadas para dois pacientes com paralisia cerebral, com deficiências motora e verbal, sendo um adulto de quarenta e seis anos (M) e, uma criança de quatro anos (MI). Resultaram deste processo as diretrizes que compõem o PD4CAT, bem como as soluções em TAs. / Customization is essential for Computer Assistive Technologies, or High Assistive Technology (HAT), to effectively meet the needs of people with disabilities in their daily activities and in rehabilitation therapy. These technologies are currently provided in a standardized way, and therapists have to adapt them so that their patients can use them. Participatory design (PD), as a methodology that actively involves the user in the design process, is very adequate to customize HATs, allowing active participation by users with impairments as co-designers of their solutions. However, few are the studies presenting recommendations to PD including these users. No research work was spotted considering PD methods to include people with disabilities, independently of their impairment. Aiming to fill this gap, this research proposes PD4CAT Participatory Design for Customized Assistive Technology, a method to aid multidisciplinary teams to conceive customized computer solutions using PD for actively involving the team - which includes persons with impairments, their therapists and caretakers in the design and development cycle. The methodology adopted in this work for obtaining the PD4CAT proposal was the research-action, in two cycles that inserted the researchers in rehabilitation institutions. In the process, two case studies were conducted for developing customized HATs for two patients with cerebral palsy, with motor and verbal impairments, one being a forty-six-year old adult (M) and a four-year-old child (MI). This process resulted in the guidelines composing PD4CAT, as well as the AT solutions.

The objective of this project is to impove the social skills of troubled middle school children by teaching them humane dog care as well as the handling and training skills of dogs. The hope is to use therapy dogs as a link to the local environment and the development of environmental sensitivity; and to improve the academic status and decrease any negative behaviors displayed by these children. Includes lesson plans.

Many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulties with social communication and prosocial behaviors. Due to a lack of social communication and social interaction skills among children with ASD, special education teachers are tasked with providing meaningful social opportunities to them to facilitate their learning of these skills. Special education literature lacks research studies about how dog-based animal-assisted interventions (AAI) can improve social communication outcomes for children in a school setting. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study, guided by Bowlby's theory of attachment and the human-animal bond concept, was to explore, describe, and improve the understanding of how elementary teachers use dog-based AAI programs in their classrooms to facilitate social communication skill development for students with ASD. Data were collected through individual interviews of 10 elementary teachers and child-study team members who used AAI programs within their buildings. Data were openly coded using thematic analysis. Key findings of the study revealed that a therapy dog could act as a stimulus for social interactions as well as facilitate students' social interaction participation. The results also indicated the importance of the teacher's role in implementing AAI programs that target social communication skills. This study may contribute to the field of special education practice by promoting the implementation of more AAI programs in educational settings, not just for students with ASD, but also potentially for the whole school community.

<p>This study examined constructions of horses and means staff working with horses parallel to therapy in institutional care ascribes to horses. A narrative method was used and the theoretical framework was social constructionism. A question was asked to the narratives: How can practice in institutional care be understood through these stories? The result showed different pictures of institutional care. Horses seem to provide a multi-faceted therapeutic tool. Through the horses staff could establish relations built on trust with their clients. The stable-environment and the horses provided healthy recreation and a social competence usable for clients in life. The constructions of horses also seemed related to the means ascribed to them in the daily life of the institution. So far there has been little research about animals in Swedish institutional care. If there are animals in institutions they probably fill some kind of function for social work and therefore the phenomena needs to be further examined. Especially as research claim economical and social benefits in using animals in human health care. Animals have been looked upon as trivial but the academic discipline dealing with relations between animals and humans, anthrozoology, has gained respect and is now considered serious.</p>

This study examined constructions of horses and means staff working with horses parallel to therapy in institutional care ascribes to horses. A narrative method was used and the theoretical framework was social constructionism. A question was asked to the narratives: How can practice in institutional care be understood through these stories? The result showed different pictures of institutional care. Horses seem to provide a multi-faceted therapeutic tool. Through the horses staff could establish relations built on trust with their clients. The stable-environment and the horses provided healthy recreation and a social competence usable for clients in life. The constructions of horses also seemed related to the means ascribed to them in the daily life of the institution. So far there has been little research about animals in Swedish institutional care. If there are animals in institutions they probably fill some kind of function for social work and therefore the phenomena needs to be further examined. Especially as research claim economical and social benefits in using animals in human health care. Animals have been looked upon as trivial but the academic discipline dealing with relations between animals and humans, anthrozoology, has gained respect and is now considered serious.

Ridterapi har på senare tid börjat användas som en komplettarande behandlingsmetod för psykosocial problematik. I dagsläget finns ännu inte mycket forskning inom ämnet och behandlingsmetoden är vare sig speciellt känd eller etablerad. I denna uppsats görs en kartläggning av socialsekreterares uppfattning och kännedom om ridterapi. Undersökningen var i form av en enkät och genomfördes i Uppsala län där socialsekreterare som arbetar med placeringar på HVB-hem medverkade. Vi ville se om olika faktorer som exempelvis ett eget djurintresse, kunskap om behandlingsmetoden, kön och ålder kunde påverka deras inställning till ridterapi. Resultatet av undersökningen visade att våra respondenters generella attityd till behandligsmetoden var positiv och att de i hög grad kunde tänka sig att göra sådana placeringar och de olika faktorerna vi jämfört med i undersökningen påverkade inte resultatet nämnvärt. Dock visade det sig att det var många som inte kände till vad ridterapi var. / Recently it has been more common to use Equine assisted therapy (EAT) as a complementary treatment for psychosocial issues. Today, not much research has been done in this area and therapy method is neither known nor established. In this essay a survey has been done in the purpose to get a grip of social workers attitude toward and knowledge about EAT. The survey was performed in Uppsala County and social workers who put clients in care or residence homes (HVB) were queried. We wanted to investigate how different factors such as an interest in animals, knowledge about the therapy method, gender or age could affect the respondents attitude toward EAT. The result from our investigation has shown that our respondents had an overall positive attitude toward EAT and that they to a high degree would make such a placement. The different factors that we compared with did not affect the result in a high degree. However, our results also showed that the majority of our respondents did not know about EAT or what it can be used for.

While there have been many presentations and anecdotal evidence in support of AAT, quantitative empirically validated studies are very limited. Without quantitative empirical studies to support the effectiveness of AAT, it remains an unproven complement to traditional physical and psychotherapeutic practices (Kruger & Serpell,2010). The value and importance of non-empirical literature on AAT,including therapists’ observations, various author’s personal experiences, and unstructured interviews with patients, will be explored in the next section. Empirical literature on AAT, including scientific experiment and controlled research studies, will also be addressed. Finally, a conclusion providing ideas for future directions in research in this discipline will be presented.

No description available.

This dissertation serves as a report on the qualitative exploration of best practices in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) with children. The aim of the study was to explore and describe best practices in the field of AAT with children in the Western Cape. The research made use of the case study design, which offered the researcher the opportunity to interact with a small number of individuals and look for patterns in the research participants’ words and experiences. Four participants, who were trained mental health professionals and had offered AAT to children, were selected to participate in the research. A literature review of animal-assisted therapy and best practice provided a theoretical basis for the research. The history of AAT, the uses and benefits of AAT and the animals incorporated in AAT were explored. The term “best practice” and its application in mental health and AAT were also discussed. The verbatim transcriptions of the audiotaped data were analysed and interpreted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and an AAT conceptual framework (brought about by the literature review). Themes were developed from the empirical data and substantiated by the literature review. Five main themes emerged as a result of the analysis. The first theme, Training of the animal-assisted therapist, focused on both the mental health training and the AAT training of the therapist. The second theme, Training of animals incorporated in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of training the animal to be included in AAT. The third theme, Different client populations in animal-assisted therapy, looked at which populations should be included, excluded or included and carefully managed during AAT. The fourth theme, Ethical considerations in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of considering both the child’s and the animal’s welfare. The fifth theme, Regulation of animal-assisted therapy, gave a more in-depth description of the current regulation of AAT in the Western Cape and provided suggestions for the regulation of AAT. Based on the findings of the five themes, recommendations were made for best practice in AAT with children in the Western Cape. / Thesis (MA (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

This dissertation serves as a report on the qualitative exploration of best practices in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) with children. The aim of the study was to explore and describe best practices in the field of AAT with children in the Western Cape. The research made use of the case study design, which offered the researcher the opportunity to interact with a small number of individuals and look for patterns in the research participants’ words and experiences. Four participants, who were trained mental health professionals and had offered AAT to children, were selected to participate in the research. A literature review of animal-assisted therapy and best practice provided a theoretical basis for the research. The history of AAT, the uses and benefits of AAT and the animals incorporated in AAT were explored. The term “best practice” and its application in mental health and AAT were also discussed. The verbatim transcriptions of the audiotaped data were analysed and interpreted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and an AAT conceptual framework (brought about by the literature review). Themes were developed from the empirical data and substantiated by the literature review. Five main themes emerged as a result of the analysis. The first theme, Training of the animal-assisted therapist, focused on both the mental health training and the AAT training of the therapist. The second theme, Training of animals incorporated in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of training the animal to be included in AAT. The third theme, Different client populations in animal-assisted therapy, looked at which populations should be included, excluded or included and carefully managed during AAT. The fourth theme, Ethical considerations in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of considering both the child’s and the animal’s welfare. The fifth theme, Regulation of animal-assisted therapy, gave a more in-depth description of the current regulation of AAT in the Western Cape and provided suggestions for the regulation of AAT. Based on the findings of the five themes, recommendations were made for best practice in AAT with children in the Western Cape. / Thesis (MA (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.