Recent Study Shows One Interesting Difference Between Dog and Cat Owners
A study published in Frontiers in Psychology has found a difference between people who own cats, people who own dogs, and people who don't own any pets. This study is once again going to ignite the great debate about who is happier, dog or cat owners.
The aim of this study was to determine whether cat owners, dog owners, and individuals without pets differ in terms of self-esteem, and the results may surprise you.
The study on whether cat or dog owners are happier found that dog owners tend to have higher self-esteem than those without pets. On the other hand, cat owners seem to have slightly lower self-esteem compared to those without pets. The study states that several explanations for the relationship between pet ownership and self-esteem are possible.
The study says that some of the reasons could be that first, the reaction of others, such as friends and family, colleagues and even strangers, can affect the self-esteem of the pet owner. So if a dog owner is posting adorable videos or photos of their fur baby on social media and getting a lot of likes, that can increase the owner's self-esteem.
Secondly, the study suggests that a dog may consider his owner as a “pack” member with both striving for cohesiveness and appeasement. Because cats are more independent than dogs and don't consider themselves pack animals their owners may not benefit from a “pack” or cohort membership due to their pet, as dog owners may do.
The article also states that because dogs force their owners to exercise that this increases the likelihood of dog owners meeting other people, who are also walking their dogs, or visiting dog parks, which could increase a dog owner's social circle. Thus introducing them to more friends and increasing self esteem.
The article concludes with "Furthermore, longitudinal studies are needed to better understand the link between animal ownership and self-esteem."
At the end of the day, no matter what pet you own, dog or cat, both increase emotional and physical well-being. Pet ownership has been proven to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and improve quality of life. The idea that cat owners have lower self esteem doesn't quite sit well with me personally, because there are numerous cat owners who seem to be doing fantastically in the self-esteem department.
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