Psychology

Van Houtte & Jarvis (1995)                                                                                             Aim: The see what part pets play in adolescents self esteem.                                                   Procedure:( 130 pupils , 71 boys, 59 girls, in illinois)  Ask the child about the marital status of their parents, socio-economic status of their parents, sibling amount, pet woner,pet type, pet duties, autonomy, self- esteem, self concept, attachment to pet. Autonomy was recorded on a 4 point scale about the question "My parents and i agree on everything". Self concept was measured on a 5 point scale about phrases such as " I am happy". Self esteem was measured on a 4 point scale about the phrase " On a whole i am satisfied with my self". Attachment to pet was measuered on a 7 point scale on a series of questions like " I consider my pet to be a friend".       Results: Adolescents had a higher self esteem if they were a pet owner.                                   Evaluation:

• May have lied on the questionaire
• shouldnt uses quantative data on complex issues as they are too complicated to complare to a number.
• It is not representative as it was only done in one city in one counrty, so this makes it culturally biased.