| Research in the field of Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) has begun to reveal the therapeutic benefits inherent in the nature of horses. The existing quantitative and qualitative studies on EAP suggest improvement in self-efficacy, self-awareness, and emotion regulation, while decreasing negative affect, and maladaptive behaviors. This study examined the effects of EAP on self-efficacy, self-awareness, positive and negative affect, and emotion regulation among 95 adult inpatient psychiatric residents dealing with substance abuse, mood disorders, and trauma. Residents were assessed using the physiological measure of heart rate variability (HRV) for emotion regulation, as well as self-report measures on self-efficacy, self-awareness, and positive and negative affect. Although results did not show causality, they revealed significant changes between pre- and post-tests on self-report variables. In addition, changes from baseline to post-HRV recordings indicated a significant correlation among HRV variables most associated with parasympathetic activity, which is related to emotion regulation. Findings suggest that the number of EAP sessions may have contributed to an increase in participants' HRV measures, self-efficacy, self-awareness, positive affect, and a decrease in negative affect. |
