The present meta-analytic review examined the associations and differences between interpersonal and pet attachment bonds, considering the attachment dimensions of anxiety and avoidance. The work complies with the PRISMA guidelines and was pre-registered on PROSPERO. The literature search was conducted by consulting the PubMed, PsycInfo, PsycArticles, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar databases, which yielded 12 studies. The meta-analyses showed a moderate positive association for the anxiety dimension (r = .39) and a weak positive association for the avoidance dimension (r = .16) between interpersonal and pet attachment. The levels for anxiety and avoidance dimensions in pet attachment were also significantly lower than those in interpersonal attachment (p-value <.001). The findings suggest that there would be moderate correspondence between the two attachment bonds for the anxiety dimension, whereas avoidance strategies might not be fully transposed to pet attachment bonds. Compared to interpersonal attachment, pet attachment also seems to be characterised by lower levels of attachment insecurity and this could be a useful element to consider in therapeutic contexts.
AbesigJ.ChenY.WangH.SompoF. M.WuI. X. (2020). Prevalence of viral hepatitis B in Ghana between 2015 and 2019: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One, 15(6), Article e0234348. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234348
2.
AmiotC. E.BastianB. (2015). Toward a psychology of human-animal relations. Psychological Bulletin, 141(1), 6–47. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038147
3.
BachiK. (2012). Equine-facilitated psychotherapy: The gap between practice and knowledge. Society and Animals, 20(4), 364–380. https://doi.org/10.1163/15685306-12341242
4.
BachiK. (2013). Application of attachment theory to equine-facilitated psychotherapy. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 43(3), 187–196. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10879-013-9232-1
5.
BeckL.MadreshE. A. (2008). Romantic partners and four-legged friends: An extension of attachment theory to relationships with pets. Anthrozoös, 21(1), 43–56. https://doi.org/10.2752/089279308X274056
6.
BouldE.BigbyC.BennettP. C.HowellT. J. (2018). ‘More people talk to you when you have a dog’–dogs as catalysts for social inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 62(10), 833–841. https://doi.org/10.1111/jir.12538
7.
BowlbyJ. (1982). Attachment and loss. In Attachment (2nd ed.). Basic Books.
8.
BrownO. K.SymonsD. K. (2016). “My pet has passed”: Relations of adult attachment styles and current feelings of grief and trauma after the event. Death Studies, 40(4), 247–255. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2015.1128499
9.
ChanH. W.WongD. F. K. (2022). Effects of companion dogs on adult attachment, emotion regulation, and mental wellbeing in Hong Kong. Society & Animals, 30(5-6), 668–688. https://doi.org/10.1163/15685306-bja10091
ClementsH.ValentinS.JenkinsN.RankinJ.GeeN. R.SnellgroveD.SlomanK. A. (2021). Companion animal type and level of engagement matter: A mixed-methods study examining links between companion animal guardianship, loneliness and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Animals, 11(8), 2349. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082349
12.
CoyA. E.GreenJ. D. (2018). Treating pets well: The role of attachment anxiety and avoidance. Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin, 2018(2), 14–31. https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2018.0006
13.
DassahS.SakyiS. A.FrempongM. T.LuuseA. T.EphraimR. K.AntoE. O.OduroA. (2015). Seroconversion of hepatitis B vaccine in young children in the Kassena Nankana district of Ghana: A cross-sectional study. PLoS One, 10(12), Article e0145209. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0145209
14.
DavisH. L. (2011). Death of a companion animal: Understanding human responses to bereavement. In BlazinaC.BoyrazG.Shen-MillerD. (Eds.), The psychology of the human-animal bond: A resource for clinicians and researchers (pp. 225–242). Springer.
15.
DemeterN. (2020). Attachment orientation towards a pet in stroke survivors: Association with cognitive function, participation and quality of life. (Doctoral Dissertation). University of Haifa.
16.
FuR.GartlehnerG.GrantM.ShamliyanT.SedrakyanA.WiltT. J.GriffithL.OremusM.RainaP.IsmailaA.SantaguidaP.LauJ.TrikalinosT. A. (2010). Conducting quantitative synthesis when comparing medical interventions: AHRQ and the effective health care program. In Methods guide for effectiveness and comparative effectiveness reviews. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US).
17.
GibbonsR. D.HedekerD. R.DavisJ. M. (1993). Estimation of effect size from a series of experiments involving paired comparisons. Journal of Educational Statistics, 18(3), 271–279. https://doi.org/10.3102/10769986018003271
18.
Goulet-PelletierJ. C.CousineauD. (2018). A review of effect sizes and their confidence intervals, part I: The Cohen’s d family. The Quantitative Methods for Psychology, 14(4), 242–265. https://doi.org/10.20982/tqmp.14.4.p242
19.
GreenJ. D.CoyA. E.MathewsM. A. (2018). Attachment anxiety and avoidance influence pet choice and pet-directed behaviours. Anthrozoös, 31(4), 475–494. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2018.1482117
20.
GreenJ. D.MathewsM. A.FosterC. A. (2009). Another kind of “interpersonal” relationship: Humans, companion animals, and attachment theory. In CuylerE.AckhartM. (Eds.), Psychology of relationships (pp. 87–108). Nova Science Publishers.
21.
GuyattG. H.OxmanA. D.VistG. E.KunzR.Falck-YtterY.Alonso-CoelloP.SchünemannH. J. (2008). Grade: An emerging consensus on rating quality of evidence and strength of recommendations. BMJ, 336(7650), 924–926. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39489.470347.AD
22.
HaddawayN. R.CollinsA. M.CoughlinD.KirkS. (2015). The role of Google Scholar in evidence reviews and its applicability to grey literature searching. PLoS One, 10(9), Article e0138237. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138237
23.
HazanC.ShaverP. R. (1994). Attachment as an organizational framework for research on close relationships. Psychological Inquiry, 5(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli0501_1
24.
HigginsJ. P.ThompsonS. G.DeeksJ. J.AltmanD. G. (2003). Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. BMJ, 327(7414), 557–560. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.327.7414.557
25.
KlohnenE. C.WellerJ. A.LuoS.ChoeM. (2005). Organization and predictive power of general and relationship-specific attachment models: One for all, and all for one?Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31(12), 1665–1682. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167205278307
26.
KrugerK. A.SerpellJ. A. (2010). Animal-assisted interventions in mental health: Definitions and theoretical foundations. In FineA. H. (Ed.), Handbook on animal-assisted therapy (pp. 33–48). Academic Press.
KurdekL. A. (2009). Pet dogs as attachment figures for adult owners. Journal of Family Psychology, 23(4), 439–446. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014979
29.
LangstonS. C. (2014). Understanding and quantifying the roles of perceived social support, pet attachment, and adult attachment in adult pet owners’ sense of well-being. (Doctoral Dissertation). Washington State University.
30.
LockyerJ. M.OlivaJ. L. (2020). Better to have loved and lost? Human avoidant attachment style towards dogs predicts group membership as ‘forever owner’ or ‘foster carer’. Animals, 10(9), 1679. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10091679
31.
Manels-MurphyM. (2018). Attachment style, pet loss and online bereavement: The associated effect on complicated grief. Doctoral Dissertation. Acadia University.
32.
Marsa-SambolaF.WilliamsJ.MuldoonJ.LawrenceA.ConnorM.CurrieC. (2017). Quality of life and adolescents’ communication with their significant others (mother, father, and best friend): The mediating effect of attachment to pets. Attachment & Human Development, 19(3), 278–297. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2017.1293702
33.
MeehanM.MassavelliB.PachanaN. (2017). Using attachment theory and social support theory to examine and measure pets as sources of social support and attachment figures. Anthrozoös, 30(2), 273–289. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2017.1311050
34.
MikulincerM.ShaverP. R. (2003). The attachment behavioural system in adulthood: Activation, psychodynamics, and interpersonal processes. In ZannaM. P. (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (pp. 53–152). Academic Press.
35.
MikulincerM.ShaverP. R. (2007). Attachment in adulthood: Structure, dynamics and change. Guilford Press.
36.
NoftleE. E.ShaverP. R. (2006). Attachment dimensions and the big five personality traits: Associations and comparative ability to predict relationship quality. Journal of Research in Personality, 40(2), 179–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2004.11.003
ÖzenD.BıçakcıN. M.Salgırlı DemirbaşY. (2024). Exploring the dynamics of human‐pet attachment: An in‐depth analysis of socio‐demographic factors and relationships. Ankara Universitesi Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 71(4), 385–393. https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.1366652
39.
Parish-PlassN.BachiK. (2020). Psychodynamic animal-assisted psychotherapy: Processing and healing through relationships. In DriscollC. J. (Ed.), Animal-assisted interventions for health and human service professionals (pp. 361–405). Nova Science Pub Inc.
40.
PayneE.DeAraugoJ.BennettP.McGreevyP. (2016). Exploring the existence and potential underpinnings of dog–human and horse–human attachment bonds. Behavioural Processes, 125, 114–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2015.10.004
41.
PetersonR. A.BrownS. P. (2005). On the use of beta coefficients in meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(1), 175–181. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.1.175
42.
PierceT.LydonJ. E. (2001). Global and specific relational models in the experience of social interactions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(4), 613–631. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.80.4.613
43.
Prato-PrevideE.Basso RicciE.ColomboE. S. (2022). The complexity of the human–animal bond: Empathy, attachment and anthropomorphism in human–animal relationships and animal hoarding. Animals, 12(20), 2835. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12202835
RosenthalR.CooperH.HedgesL. (1994). Parametric measures of effect size. In CooperH.HedgesL. V. (Eds.), The handbook of research synthesis (Vol. 621, No. 2, pp. 231–244). Russell Sage Foundation.
46.
RusuA. S.Costea-BarlutiuC.TurnerD. C. (2019). Interpersonal and pet attachment, empathy toward animals, and anthropomorphism: An investigation of pet owners in Romania. People and Animals: The International Journal of Research and Practice, 2(1), 6. https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/paij/vol2/iss1/6
47.
SimonsohnU.NelsonL. D.SimmonsJ. P. (2014). p-curve and effect size: Correcting for publication bias using only significant results. Perspectives on Psychological Science: A Journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 9(6), 666–681. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691614553988
48.
SimonsohnU.SimmonsJ. P.NelsonL. D. (2015). Better P-curves: Making P-curve analysis more robust to errors, fraud, and ambitious P-hacking, a reply to Ulrich and Miller (2015). Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 144(6), 1146–1152. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000104
49.
van AertR. C.WichertsJ. M.van AssenM. A. (2016). Conducting meta-analyses based on p values: Reservations and recommendations for applying p-uniform and p-curve. Perspectives on Psychological Science: A Journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 11(5), 713–729. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691616650874
50.
ViechtbauerW. (2010). Conducting meta-analyses in R with the metafor package. Journal of Statistical Software, 36(3), 1–48. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v036.i03
51.
ViechtbauerW.CheungM. W. (2010). Outlier and influence diagnostics for meta-analysis. Research Synthesis Methods, 1(2), 112–125. https://doi.org/10.1002/jrsm.11
52.
WellsG. A.SheaB.O’ConnellD.PetersonJ.WelchV.LososM.TugwellP. (2000). The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) for assessing the quality of nonrandomised studies in meta-analyses. The Ottawa Hospital.
53.
Zilcha-ManoS.MikulincerM.ShaverP. R. (2011a). An attachment perspective on human–pet relationships: Conceptualization and assessment of pet attachment orientations. Journal of Research in Personality, 45(4), 345–357. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2011.04.001
54.
Zilcha-ManoS.MikulincerM.ShaverP. R. (2011b). Pet in the therapy room: An attachment perspective on animal-assisted therapy. Attachment & Human Development, 13(6), 541–561. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2011.608987
55.
Zilcha-ManoS.MikulincerM.ShaverP. R. (2012). Pets as safe havens and secure bases: The moderating role of pet attachment orientations. Journal of Research in Personality, 46(5), 571–580. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2012.06.005
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
