Friends with benefits: The positive consequences of pet-friendly practices for workers’ well-being

Although there is evidence that pets may help individuals who are facing significant daily stressors, little is known about the benefits of pet-friendly practices for their owners’ well-being. Based on the social exchange theory and on the Rusbult investment model, we argue that organizational pet-f...

ver descrição completa

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor principal: Junça Silva, A. (author)
Formato: article
Idioma:eng
Publicado em: 2022
Assuntos:
Texto completo:http://hdl.handle.net/10071/24704
País:Portugal
Oai:oai:repositorio.iscte-iul.pt:10071/24704
Descrição
Resumo:Although there is evidence that pets may help individuals who are facing significant daily stressors, little is known about the benefits of pet-friendly practices for their owners’ well-being. Based on the social exchange theory and on the Rusbult investment model, we argue that organizational pet-friendly practices will be viewed as a source of support from an organization that increases workers’ organizational identification, which in turn will lead to higher levels of psychological well-being and life satisfaction. For this study, 208 working adults answered an online questionnaire. Results from the study showed that the more pet-friendly practices the higher the workers’ organizational identification, which led to higher indices of psychological well-being and life satisfaction. This study contributes to a better understanding of the human–animal interaction and how pets can function as a resource for individuals’ well-being at work.