The Effects of Therapeutic Horseback Riding Program on Motor Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Mengxian Zhao, Yonghao You, Jinming Li, Sean Healy, Alyx Taylor, Zhihao Zhang, Linlin Li, Liye Zou

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Therapeutic horseback riding (THR) as an animal-assisted intervention is one of the innovative approaches emer-ging in the treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The current study was designed to investigate the effects of a 12-week, twice a week THR program on motor skills in sixty-eight children with ASD aged 5–10 years old. All participants selected met the DSM-V criteria for ASD, and a total of fifty-three participants completed the study. A randomized controlled trial design was utilized for the study. Data was collected via a pre-THR test, interim-THR test, and post-THR test to investigate the possible changes in motor skills throughout the 12-week THR program. Results showed that the THR program significantly improved overall motor skills across time points (p < 0.05) and sub-skills of run, gallop and two-hand catch (as compared to the control group, p < 0.05). In conclusion, the THR program may be an effective option for improving motor skills in children with ASD and further investigation with a longer period of intervention is warranted.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)475-489
Number of pages15
JournalInternational Journal of Mental Health Promotion
Volume24
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • animal-assisted intervention
  • autistic
  • children with ASD
  • developmental disability
  • equine-assisted activities and therapies
  • motor skills
  • Therapeutic horseback riding

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