Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

Feline Behavior, Age, and Human Sociability

Publication Date

Spring 2023

College

Sciences and Mathematics, College of

Department

Psychological Science, Department of

BURS Faculty Advisor

Dr. Adam Smiley

Presentation Type

Oral Presentation

Abstract

Since the start of the century, cat ownership has increased by almost thirty percent (“Pet Ownership Statistics,” 2022). Finding a potential solution for poor feline behavior has therefore become more relevant. If the potential exists to decrease the prevalence of poor behavior in cats, then it may bridge the emotional gap that exists between cats and their owners as time progresses. It is important to determine if cat coping mechanisms are correlated at all with less aggressive behaviors towards humans because this may provide insight for veterinarians to address and solve feline behavioral issues. This may also reduce the instances of relinquishment or euthanasia since aggression towards humans is one of the primary causes (Rodan & Heath, 2016). Behavioral problems also break down the emotional bonds between pet and owner, therefore causing potential detriments to psychological and physical health. We hypothesize a negative relationship between good cat coping mechanisms and aggressive behavior towards humans. Additionally, we hypothesize that feline age and poor behavior will be predictors for low human sociability. Through use of an existing dataset (Mikkola et al., 2021), we look at cat coping mechanisms, also known as positive animal welfare, and its relationship with aggressive behaviors towards humans. We ran a correlation test between positive cat coping mechanisms and aggressive behavior towards humans. We found that [Results will be presented at BURS]. We conducted a linear regression to determine if age and poor behavior could predict for low human sociability and found that [Results will be presented at BURS].

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