The value of the life of companion animals:

Human-animal bond, beyond speciesism and economic considerations

Authors

  • Marcos Díaz Videla

Keywords:

companion animal, dilemmas, speciesism, pets

Abstract

Pet animals occupy a paradoxical place in our society, being incorporated as members of human families while retaining the character of market objects. This duality confronts guardians of animals in contradictory situations and moral dilemmas. Three studies of descriptive designs correlational (n = 419), mixed (n = 278) and descriptive-phenomenological (n = 70) were developed to evaluate and describe the intrinsic valorization that the guardians grant to their pets and its contraposition with human life. The results highlight the relativization of the belonging to the species that these guardians make of their animals, exempting them from economic considerations and rejecting the anthropocentric tradition that considers human life as sacred and superior to any non-human animal. This highlights the posthumanist need to understand the world from multiple and heterogeneous perspectives.

Author Biography

  • Marcos Díaz Videla

    Dr. en psicología, docente en Universidad de Flores (Argentina). Laboratorio de Investigación en Antrozoología de Buenos Aires (LIABA).

References

American Pet Products Association. [APPA]. (s.f.). Pet industry market size & ownership statistics. Disponible en: http://www.americanpetproducts.org/ press_industrytrends.asp.

American Veterinary Medical Association. [AVMA]. (2012). U.S. pet ownership & demographics sourcebook. Schaumberg, IL, American Veterinary Medical Association.

Amiot, C. E., & Bastian, B. (2015). Toward a psychology of human–animal relations. Psychological Bulletin, 141(1), 6-47.

Amiot, C. E., & Bastian, B. (2017). Solidarity with animals: Assessing a relevant dimension of social identification with animals. PloS one, 12(1), e0168184.

Anderson, P., Beaudoin, J., Castro, J., González, B., Landi, P., Marcos, E., & Molina, J. (1996). Relevamiento demográfico de animales domésticos en la Ciudad de Buenos Aires (1994). Revista de Medicina Veterinaria, 77(3).

Archer, J. (1997). Why do people love their pets? Evolution and Human behavior, 18(4), 237-259.

Berreby, D. (2008). Us and them: The science of identity. New York: University of Chicago Press.

Bovisio, M., Fuentes, V., González, B. B., Lencinas, O. E., Mestres, N. A., Rodríguez, O., … & Marcos, E. R. (2004). Relevamiento demográfico de animales domésticos en la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Año 2004. Trabajo original. Instituto de Zoonosis Luis Pasteur.

Boya, U. O., Dotson, M. J., & Hyatt, E. M. (2012). Dimensions of the dog–human relationship: A segmentation approach. Journal of Targeting, Measurement and Analysis for Marketing, 20(2), 133-143.

Cohen, S. P. (2002). Can pets function as family members?. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 24(6), 621-638.

Díaz Videla, M. (2016). La relación humano-perro de compañía: Estudio descriptivo en Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (Tesis doctoral). Universidad de Flores. Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires.

Díaz Videla, M. (2017a). Antrozoología y la relación humano-perro. Buenos Aires: Irojo.

Díaz Videla, M. (2017b). ¿Qué es una mascota? Objetos y miembros de la familia. Ajayu Órgano de Difusión Científica del Departamento de Psicología UCBSP, 15(1), 53–69.

Díaz Videla, M., Olarte, M. A., & Camacho, J. M. (2015). Antrozoología: Definiciones, áreas de desarrollo y aplicaciones prácticas para profesionales de la salud. European Scientific Journal, 11(10), 185-210.

Díaz Videla, M., & Olarte, M. A. (2016). Animales de compañía, personalidad humana y los beneficios percibidos por los custodios. PSIENCIA. Revista Latinoamericana de Ciencia Psicológica, 8(2), 1-19.

Díaz Videla, M., & Olarte, M. A. (2017). Dogs' demographic characteristics associated with relationship differences perceived by the guardian. European Scientific Journal, 13(15), 218-232.

Dirección General de Estadística y Censos. [DGEyC]. (2016). Informe módulo de Tenencia responsable y sanidad de perros y gatos. Encuesta anual de hogares 2014. Ministerio de Hacienda, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Disponible en: https://www.estadisticaciudad.gob.ar

Dotson, M. J., & Hyatt, E. M. (2008). Understanding dog–human companionship. Journal of Business Research, 61(5), 457-466.

Dwyer, F., Bennett, P. C., & Coleman, G. J. (2006). Development of the Monash Dog Owner Relationship Scale (MDORS). Anthrozoös, 19(3), 243-256.

European Pet Food Industry Federation. [FEDIAF]. (2014). Facts and figures. Disponible en: http://www.fediaf.org/facts-figures/

Foot, P. (1967). The Problem of Abortion and the Doctrine of the Double Effect. Oxford Review, 5, 5–15.

Green, J. D., Mathews, M. A., & Foster, C. A. (2009). Another kind of “interpersonal” relationship: humans, companion animals, and attachment theory. En E. Cuyler & M. Ackhart (Eds.), Relationships and psychology: A practical guide (pp. 87-108). New York: Novo Science Publishers.

Greene, J., & Haidt, J. (2002). How (and where) does moral judgment work?. Trends in cognitive sciences, 6(12), 517-523.

Haidt, J. (2007). The new synthesis in moral psychology. Science, 316(5827), 998-1002. doi: 10.1126/science.1137651

Haidt, J., Bjorklund, F., & Murphy, S. (1999). Moral dumbfounding: When intuition finds no reason. Unpublished manuscript, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA.

Harenski, C. L., Antonenko, O., Shane, M. S., & Kiehl, K. A. (2008). Gender differences in neural mechanisms underlying moral sensitivity. Social cognitive and affective neuroscience, 3(4), 313-321. doi: 10.1093/scan/nsn026

Hernández Sampieri, R., Fernández Collado, F., & Baptista, P. (2006). Metodología de la investigación. México: McGraw Hill.

Herzog, H. A. (2012). Los amamos, los odiamos y... los comemos: Esa relación tan especial con los animales. Barcelona: Kairós.

Hills, A. M. (1993). The motivational bases of attitudes toward animals. Society & Animals, 1(2), 111-128.

Ingold, T. (1994). From trust to domination: An alternative history of human-animal relations. En A. Manning & J. Serpell (Eds.) Animals and Human Society: Changing Perspectives (pp. 1-22). London: Routledge.

Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas y Censos. [INDEC]. (2001). Censo Nacional de Población y Vivienda 2001. Ministerio de Economía, República Argentina. Disponible en: http://www.indec.gov.ar

Janoff-Bulman, R., Timko, C., & Carli, L. L. (1985). Cognitive biases in blaming the victim. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 21(2), 161-177.

Kahane, G., Everett, J. A., Earp, B. D., Farias, M., & Savulescu, J. (2015). ‘Utilitarian’ judgments in sacrificial moral dilemmas do not reflect impartial concern for the greater good. Cognition, 134, 193-209.

Levin, J., Arluke, A., & Irvine, L. (2017). Are People More Disturbed by Dog or Human Suffering?: Influence of Victim’s Species and Age. Society & Animals, 25(1), 1-16.

Malia, L. M., Bohrmann, M. A., & Poirier, C. R. (2018). The effects of age and sex on Saving pets over humans. Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research, 23(4), 306-310.

Miura, A., Bradshaw, J. W., & Tanida, H. (2000). Attitudes towards dogs: A study of university students in Japan and the UK. Anthrozoös, 13(2), 80-88.

Páramo, P., & Galvis, C. J. (2010). Conceptualizaciones acerca de los animales en niños de la sociedad mayoritaria y de la comunidad indígena Uitoto en Colombia. Folios, Bogotá, 32, 111-124.

Petrinovich, L., O'Neill, P., & Jorgensen, M. (1993). An empirical study of moral intuitions: Toward an evolutionary ethics. Journal of personality and social psychology, 64(3), 467.

Real Academia Española. (2014). Dilema. En Diccionario de la lengua española (23.a ed.). Recuperado de http://dle.rae.es/?id=Yy91lUI

Sandøe, P., Corr, S., & Palmer, C. (2016). Companion Animal Ethics. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Serpell, J. A. (1996). In the company of animals: A study of human-animal relationships. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Serpell, J. A. (2011). Human-Dog relationships worldwide. Dog population Management, 15(2), 49-56.

Serpell, J. A. (2016). History of companion animals and the companion animal sector. Companion Animal Ethics. John Wiley & Sons, 1, 8-23.

Serpell, J. A., & Paul, E. (1994). Pets and the development of positive attitudes to animals. En A. Manning & J. A. Serpell (Eds.), Animals and human society: Changing perspectives (pp. 127-144). London: Routledge.

Serpell, J. A., & Paul, E. (2011). Pets in the family: An evolutionary perspective. En C. A. Salmon, & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.) The Oxford handbook of evolutionary family psychology (pp. 298-309). Oxford University Press.

Sheldrake, R. (2008). De perros que saben que sus amos están camino de casa y otras facultades inexplicables de los animales. Barcelona: Paidós.

Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1986). The social identity theory of inter group behavior. In S Worchel & W. G. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 7-24). Chicago: Nelson-Hall.

Topolski, R., Weaver, J. N., Martin, Z., & McCoy, J. (2013). Choosing between the emotional dog and the rational pal: A moral dilemma with a tail. Anthrozoös, 26(2), 253-263. doi: 10.2752/175303713X13636846944321

Wells, D. L., & Hepper, P. G. (1997). Pet ownership and adults' views on the use of animals. Society & Animals, 5(1), 45-63.

Downloads

Published

2019-06-01

Issue

Section

ESTUDIOS DE CAMPO

How to Cite

The value of the life of companion animals: : Human-animal bond, beyond speciesism and economic considerations. (2019). Revista Latinoamericana De Estudios Críticos Animales, 6(1). https://revistaleca.org/index.php/leca/article/view/244