Ophorst Susan, Aarts Noelle, Bovenkerk Bernice, Hopster Hans
Institute for Science in Society, Radboud University, 6500 GL Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Animal Management, Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, Agora 1, 8934 CJ Leeuwarden, The Netherlands.
Animals (Basel). 2023 Mar 13;13(6):1038. doi: 10.3390/ani13061038.
Zoonoses, biting incidents, hereditary problems, and other issues can threaten the welfare of both humans and dogs. The Dutch government and animal welfare organizations seem to have little effect in their campaigns to influence the behavior of (potential) dog keepers, who can experience dissonance when faced with these campaigns and use coping strategies to relieve the dissonance instead of changing their behavior. In this study, in focus group discussions, dog keepers with pedigree dogs, high-risk dogs, foreign shelter dogs, and dogs purchased at puppy farms shared their experiences with opinions on dogs and were confronted with negative opinions on their dogs. The data were analyzed using a coping strategies framework. Most coping strategies were found in all groups, but were used in response to different dilemmas, with different manifestations. These differences should be kept in mind when behavior change in dog keepers is opportune. Special attention should be given to differentiating target groups, as use of the detachment coping strategy suggests that boundaries might be set differently than expected. Broad attention on problems with and for dogs can address perceived dissonance and prompt behavior change. In dialogue with dog keepers, in influential campaigns and in policy formulation, the chances of success are greater if initiators are aware of the strategies that they may encounter.
人畜共患病、咬人事件、遗传问题及其他问题可能会威胁人类和犬类的福祉。荷兰政府和动物福利组织在影响（潜在）养狗者行为的宣传活动中似乎收效甚微，这些养狗者在面对这些宣传活动时可能会产生认知失调，并采用应对策略来缓解失调，而非改变自身行为。在本研究中，在焦点小组讨论中，饲养纯种犬、高危犬、外国救助犬以及在幼犬养殖场购买的犬只的养狗者分享了他们对犬只的看法和经历，并面对了对其犬只的负面评价。使用应对策略框架对数据进行了分析。大多数应对策略在所有组中都存在，但用于应对不同的困境，表现形式也不同。在养狗者的行为改变时机合适时，应牢记这些差异。应特别关注区分目标群体，因为采用超脱应对策略表明可能会设定与预期不同的界限。广泛关注犬类面临的问题以及与犬类相关的问题可以解决感知到的失调并促使行为改变。在与养狗者的对话、有影响力的宣传活动和政策制定中，如果发起者了解他们可能遇到的策略，成功的机会就会更大。
