Dog ownership for people with substance use disorder: self-reported influence on substance use and mental health
Dog ownership provided participants with a positive sense of self and reinforced feelings of self-worth. This helped them move away from impulsive or habitual substance use patterns and adopt a more intentional, less harmful approach. The relationship with the dog also appeared to stabilise participants' mental health, enabling them to navigate depressive episodes more effectively and recover from negative moods more easily.
Authors
- Stian Biong
- Ruth Catriona Newberry (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5238-6959)
- Jørgen G. Bramness (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9250-3144)
- Andi Kerr-Little (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3419-1891)
Institutions
- Oslo University Hospital (NO)
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NO)
- Lovisenberg Diakonale Høgskole (NO)
- Norwegian Veterinary Institute (NO)
- Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NO)
- UiT The Arctic University of Norway (NO)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Substance Abuse Treatment Prevention and Policy
- Published
- 2025-06-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s13011-025-00653-x
- Primary Topic
- Human-Animal Interaction Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Universitetet i Tromsø