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Changes in Sleep of Families After the Arrival of an Autism Service Dog.

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Title: Changes in Sleep of Families After the Arrival of an Autism Service Dog.
Authors: Simard, Valérie (AUTHOR), Aubry-Guzzi, Marie-Aude (AUTHOR), Chapleau, Isabelle (AUTHOR), Moënner, Marina (AUTHOR), François, Nathe (AUTHOR), Champagne, Noël (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders. Jan2026, Vol. 56 Issue 1, p110-122. 13p.
Subjects: Families & psychology, Treatment of autism, Pearson correlation (Statistics), Pet therapy, T-test (Statistics), Dogs, Descriptive statistics, Quantitative research, Actigraphy, Analysis of covariance, Family attitudes, Sleep duration, Pre-tests & post-tests, Asperger's syndrome, Sleep quality, Data analysis software, Confidence intervals
Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the changes in sleep quality and quantity among families following the arrival of an autism service dog. We hypothesized that the sleep of the child or adolescent with autism spectrum disorder (assessed objectively with actigraphy and subjectively with a parent-reported sleep diary), and of both parents (assessed by self-reported diaries) would improve after the dog's arrival. The sleep of 18 youths (15 boys) aged from 5 to 16 years (M = 8.86), and of their parents (14 mothers, 11 fathers) was assessed for a 5- to 7-day period before (pretest) and eight to ten weeks after the dog's arrival (posttest). A designated parent (the same at the pretest and posttest) completed the sleep diary of the child, who wore an actiwatch in the meantime. Significant improvement in most sleep parameters was observed from pretest to posttest for the child and the mother, as reported in the sleep diaries. However, there was no improvement in the child's sleep when assessed objectively. Fathers' sleep duration increased after the dog's arrival, when adjusting for the child's age. All significant effects had medium to large sizes. This study provides the first quantitative evidence of the positive effect of autism service dogs on the sleep of families. These findings suggest that the dog's presence may increase the sense of safety for the child, who would resume sleeping faster or stay in the bedroom after nocturnal awakenings, leading to improved parents' sleep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: Changes in Sleep of Families After the Arrival of an Autism Service Dog.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Simard%2C+Valérie%22">Simard, Valérie</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aubry-Guzzi%2C+Marie-Aude%22">Aubry-Guzzi, Marie-Aude</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Chapleau%2C+Isabelle%22">Chapleau, Isabelle</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Moënner%2C+Marina%22">Moënner, Marina</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22François%2C+Nathe%22">François, Nathe</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Champagne%2C+Noël%22">Champagne, Noël</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Autism+%26+Developmental+Disorders%22">Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders</searchLink>. Jan2026, Vol. 56 Issue 1, p110-122. 13p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Families+%26+psychology%22">Families & psychology</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Treatment+of+autism%22">Treatment of autism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pearson+correlation+%28Statistics%29%22">Pearson correlation (Statistics)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pet+therapy%22">Pet therapy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22T-test+%28Statistics%29%22">T-test (Statistics)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Dogs%22">Dogs</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Descriptive+statistics%22">Descriptive statistics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Quantitative+research%22">Quantitative research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Actigraphy%22">Actigraphy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Analysis+of+covariance%22">Analysis of covariance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Family+attitudes%22">Family attitudes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sleep+duration%22">Sleep duration</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pre-tests+%26+post-tests%22">Pre-tests & post-tests</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asperger's+syndrome%22">Asperger's syndrome</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sleep+quality%22">Sleep quality</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Data+analysis+software%22">Data analysis software</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Confidence+intervals%22">Confidence intervals</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: This study aimed to investigate the changes in sleep quality and quantity among families following the arrival of an autism service dog. We hypothesized that the sleep of the child or adolescent with autism spectrum disorder (assessed objectively with actigraphy and subjectively with a parent-reported sleep diary), and of both parents (assessed by self-reported diaries) would improve after the dog's arrival. The sleep of 18 youths (15 boys) aged from 5 to 16 years (M = 8.86), and of their parents (14 mothers, 11 fathers) was assessed for a 5- to 7-day period before (pretest) and eight to ten weeks after the dog's arrival (posttest). A designated parent (the same at the pretest and posttest) completed the sleep diary of the child, who wore an actiwatch in the meantime. Significant improvement in most sleep parameters was observed from pretest to posttest for the child and the mother, as reported in the sleep diaries. However, there was no improvement in the child's sleep when assessed objectively. Fathers' sleep duration increased after the dog's arrival, when adjusting for the child's age. All significant effects had medium to large sizes. This study provides the first quantitative evidence of the positive effect of autism service dogs on the sleep of families. These findings suggest that the dog's presence may increase the sense of safety for the child, who would resume sleeping faster or stay in the bedroom after nocturnal awakenings, leading to improved parents' sleep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=pbh&AN=191290304
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1007/s10803-024-06546-5
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 13
        StartPage: 110
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Families & psychology
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Treatment of autism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pearson correlation (Statistics)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pet therapy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: T-test (Statistics)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Dogs
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Descriptive statistics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Quantitative research
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Actigraphy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Analysis of covariance
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      – SubjectFull: Family attitudes
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sleep duration
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pre-tests & post-tests
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Asperger's syndrome
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      – SubjectFull: Sleep quality
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      – SubjectFull: Data analysis software
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      – SubjectFull: Confidence intervals
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      – TitleFull: Changes in Sleep of Families After the Arrival of an Autism Service Dog.
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              Text: Jan2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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