Impact of Service Dogs on Engagement in Occupation for People With Mobility Impairments: A Qualitative Descriptive Study

PURPOSE: Service dogs can be trained to help people with mobility impairments engage in occupations such as propelling wheelchairs, opening doors, retrieving dropped items, providing balance, and conserving energy. Camp (2001) argued that service dogs “could be used as a form of assistive technology [AT] under the Technology Act” (p. 509). Although prior research has demonstrated the positive impacts of service dogs on social interaction, psychological well-being, and self-perceived health, a limited body of qualitative research has specifically examined how service dogs affect engagement in occupation among people with mobility impairments and how they compare with other forms of AT used to assist with occupational engagement (Winkle et al., 2011; see also Shintani et al., 2010). The purpose of this study was to learn how service dogs influence engagement in occupation among people with mobility impairments that affect gait or balance and to examine participants’ experiences using a service dog as a form of AT.

METHOD: This study used a qualitative descriptive approach. Recruitment flyers were distributed to clients of an organization that trains service dogs. Participants were English-speaking adults over age 18 with a mobility impairment who had been partnered for at least a year with a service dog trained to assist them with completion of basic and instrumental activities of daily living. Participants engaged in semistructured phone interviews focusing on the impact of service dog partnership on engagement in occupations at home and in the community and feelings regarding working with a service dog as a form of AT.

All interviews were transcribed, and a three-step process was used for data analysis (Patten, 2014). Open coding was used to examine ideas and experiences of the participants that arose during the interviews and to identify basic themes. Axial coding was used to identify relationships among the categories identified during open coding. Last, selective coding was used to identify major themes focusing on the impact of service dog partnership on occupational engagement and experiences working with service dogs versus other forms of AT to complete daily activities.

RESULTS: Four female service dog users were interviewed. Several broad themes emerged from the interviews. Participants reported that service dogs provided valuable assistance in completion of occupations within the home and community. However, they experienced a variety of both positive and challenging situations when working with their service dogs in public. They reported that their service dogs seemed to understand their unique capabilities and learned to adapt to fit their specific needs in different contexts. They felt this to be a significant benefit associated with service dog partnership.

CONCLUSION: Results suggest that service dog partnership positively influenced participants’ ability to independently perform everyday occupations, and the relationship formed with their service dog provided participants with a sense of increased security and support, encouraging them to be more active at home and in the community. Participants felt that the handler–dog relationship was the key factor that made their service dogs superior to other forms of AT used in the past.

IMPACT STATEMENT: The positive outcomes of this study indicate that service dogs can be recommended more often as a form of AT for people with mobility impairments. Because this was a small qualitative study, additional research is recommended to generate higher level evidence regarding the impacts of service dogs on engagement in occupations among people from diverse backgrounds and with various ability levels.

References

Camp, M. M. (2001). The use of service dogs as an adaptive strategy: A qualitative study. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 55, 509–517. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.55.5.509

Patten, M. L. (2014). Understanding research methods: An overview of the essentials (9th ed.). Glendale, CA: Pyrczak Publications.

Shintani, M., Senda, M., Takayanagi, T., Katayama, Y., Furusawa, K., Okutank, T., . . . Ozaki, T. (2010). The effect of service dogs on improvement of health-related quality of life. Acta Medica Okayama, 64, 109–113. https://doi.org/10.18926/AMO/32851

Winkle, M., Crowe, T. K., & Hendrix, I. (2011). Service dogs and people with physical disabilities partnerships: A systematic review. Occupational Therapy International, 19, 54–66. https://doi.org/10.1002/oti.323