Volume 30, Issue 1, 2021
DOI: 10.24205/03276716.2020.2015
Psychosocial and Neuro-Sensory Effect of Complex Dolphin Assisted Therapy for Children with Psychiatric and Behavioral Disorders
Abstract
The research aim is to assess the two-week program containing complex dolphin assisted therapy activities intended for psychosocial and neurosensory functions of children with psychiatric and behavioral disorders. The study involved 140 school-aged (7–17 years, SD=3.36) subjects: 26 girls and 114 boys. The subjects were diagnosed with mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorder (ICD-10-CM) group codes: pervasive and specific developmental disorders (F80–F89), intellectual disabilities (F70–79), and behavioral and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence (F90–F98). By employing the convenient sampling, the data was collected from 70 children who participated in complex dolphin assisted therapy activities that lasted two weeks and 70 children without changing regular conditions of their living. The following were applied for the children who took part in the complex research program: a) ten dolphin assisted therapy activity sessions daily lasting 30 min. each; b) reflex integration activities; c) sensory integration activities; d) social skills development activities. The surveyed were individually assessed on the same day before the start of the first activity session and on the next day after the last activity session, the change in the psychosocial functions was measured at the beginning and end of the dolphin assisted therapy. The participants of the control group participated in regular training sessions without changing the rhythm of their daily routine. After the first assessment, additionally, the control group was assessed two weeks later. All of the subjects were assessed according to: 1) Chandler’s (2005) Psychosocial Session Form – at the beginning and end of the dolphin assisted therapy activities; 2) neuro-sensory testing; 3) experiment, both applied before and after the investigation. Conclusions. Two weeks of the complex dolphin, assisted therapy program had a significant effect on psychosocial and neurosensory functions. The following aspects have statistically significantly changed in the investigated group children: social functions, such as engagement in team work, openness, flexibility, active listening, etc. When assessing the neurosensory functions, statistically significant changes were observed in expression of pathological reflexes, sensory modulation, and praxis. The statistically significant changes observed in the control group were minimal.
Keywords
Dolphin Assisted Therapy, Psychiatric and Behavioral Disorders, Psychosocial, Sensory issues