Developing Attachments, Empathy and Trust through Relationships with Horses

Abstract

A major theme to emerge during the course of the research was to do with how the young people developed very meaningful relationships and attachments to the horses. The participants showed their attachments to the horses in different ways, as did the horses to the young people; it definitely appeared to be a two-way relationship in many cases. A number of authors speak of how many horses seem to have an innate sensitivity to young people and adults experiencing emotional distress in some way, appearing to demonstrate extraordinary tolerance and understanding (Isaacson, 2009; Kohanov, 2001, 2005; McCormick & McCormick, 1997; Meinersmann, Bradberry & Bright Roberts, 2008; Yorke, Adams & Coady, 2008). In many cases it seemed that the participants were able to display empathy with the horses, an emotion which is reported to be intrinsically linked to parental attachment styles (De Paul & Guibert, 2008) and therefore often lacking in young people who have suffered dysfunctional attachment patterns and abusive childhoods, such as many of the young people who were referred to The Yard. It is suggested that the development of empathy is imperative to ‘the healthy emotional and social functioning of youths’ (Thompson & Gullone, 2008: 123). Conversely, a lack of empathy is reported to be linked to antisocial and aggressive behaviour, and less success in later life due to difficulty in forming positive relationships (Lexman & Reeves, 2009; Thompson & Gullone, 2008).