The Impact of Companion Animals on Social Capital and Community Violence: Setting Research, Policy and Program Agendas

The term social capital has been used to describe the networks and other forces that build social cohesion, personal investment, reci-procity, civic engagement, and interpersonal trust among residents in a community. With the exception of three Australian reports describing positive associations between companion animal owner-ship and social capital, the literature has neglected to include the presence or absence of companion animal residents of communities as factors that could potentially affect social capital and serve as pro-tective factors for community well-being. Companion animals are present in significantly large numbers in most communities, where they have considerable economic impact and provide emotional and physiologic health benefits and social support to their owners. Companion animals may mitigate the stresses of urban living and counteract what has been called "nature-deficit disorder. " Con-versely, they may also be the victims of cruelty, abuse and neglec