A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effectiveness of Dutch Cell Dogs in Incarcerated Youth

This study examined the effectiveness of Dutch Cell Dogs (DCD), a prison-based dog training program that aims to improve socioemotional functioning of incarcerated youth by giving them the opportunity to train a shelter dog. Primary (aggression and institutional infractions) and secondary (wellbeing and therapeutic functioning) outcomes were assessed for the intervention ( n = 61) and comparison group ( n = 77) before the start of DCD, after 4 weeks, and after 8 weeks at posttest. Overall, DCD participation was not effective. Compared to the comparison group, institutional infractions decrease... Mehr ...