Animal Companionship and LGBTQ People’s Health and Wellbeing.

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Animal Companionship and LGBTQ People’s Health and Wellbeing.

How do animal companions support human mental and physical well-being? In this talk, the presenter will discuss this question with regard to diverse sexualities and genders, and how people discuss how their dogs help catalyse interactions with other people. Drawing on the ‘Dog Talking and Walking Project’ which entailed an online survey of experiences and online interviews with dog owners, new light is shone on the so called ‘pet effect’. Focusing on the 14% of survey participants (n = 673) identifying as non-heterosexual (lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, queer, asexual) and the 29% of interviewees who were LGBT (n = 12 of 41) I explore how dog facilitated social interaction is particularly important for marginalised groups. Moreover, human and canine companionship has taken on a new significance for many in the current social climate, and centring LGBTQ perspectives can add to feminist and non-heteronormative understandings of human-animal bonds.

About Elizabeth Peel

Elizabeth Peel is Professor of Communication and Social Interaction at Loughborough University and was Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for the Doctoral College 2018-2022. She is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society. They have published widely in critical social and health psychology and have recently completed the ESRC-funded Future of Legal Gender project (2018-2022). She is on the Editorial Board of four journals and is Book Series Co-Editor, with Elizabeth Stokoe, of Gender and Sexualities in Psychology (Routledge).  She is currently conducting the Dog Talking and Walking Project, of which you can learn more at www.wellbeingdog.wordpress.com

Access

This event will be live captioned and transcribed. If you have any specific accessibility requirement, please let us know and we will make every effort to accommodate you.

Location

This is a hybrid event and will be held at La Trobe's city campus in room 3.04, L3, 360 Collins Street, Melbourne. If you attend this seminar in person, the organisers invite you to join them for informal drinks and nibbles afterwards.