The relation between household dogs and cats during childhood/adolescence with social role outcomes and loneliness among youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with social role dysfunction and loneliness. Household dogs and cats may facilitate social interactions and emotional support, but little is known about their associatons with social role function and loneliness among youth with ADHD. In this study, we addressed these associations in 1056 participants from the Growing Up Today Study (GUTS), a cohort of children from the Nurses' Health Study (NHS)II. ADHD was determined using maternal reports and participants' self-reports of diagnosis and/or treatment. Pet ownership was assessed during childhood and early adolescence in the 1999 questionnaire, with categories: (1) Dog and cat; (2) Dog but no cat; (3) Cat but no dog; (4) No dog or cat. Outcomes included overall social role functioning (assessed in 2013), quality of interpersonal relationships with mothers (2005) and romantic partners (2010), and loneliness (assessed repeatedly between 2007 and 2016). Overall social role functioning was analyzed using the chi-square test; quality of interpersonal relationships and loneliness were analyzed using generalized mixed models. No significant differences were observed in overall social role functioning across pet categories. Compared to those who had no dog or cat, dog and/or cat owners did not differ in their likelihood of reporting high-quality interpersonal relationships. Similarly, dog and/or cat ownership was not associated with lower likelihood of loneliness compared to those who had no dog or cat. Future studies could examine repeated measures of pet ownership and other aspects of pet ownership, such as emotional attachment, to clarify potential associations with social and psychological outcomes.