Staff Perspectives on the Targeted Incorporation of nature-based Interventions for Children and Youth at a Residential Treatment Facility

ABSTRACT Nature-based interventions that incorporate animals and the natural environment in therapeutic settings are increasingly common. However, there is a gap in understanding the intervention qualities that may facilitate treatment goals. To help answer this question, we analyzed interviews of 78 staff members at a residential and day treatment school that is an established leader in nature-based interventions. When reflecting on interventions, staff highlighted qualities such as delayed or immediate gratification, sense of safety or fear, and grounding or stimulation. Interventions were often described as offering qualities which could support more than one treatment goal. For example, a dog might provide immediate gratification by approaching a quietly seated student, or their presence could help a student feel safer in therapy. Each quality also displayed a subjective component: while one student might find time with horses grounding, another could benefit from the opportunity to manage the stimulation experienced by the horse’s smells and sounds. Further research into understanding qualities of nature-based interventions and how practitioners might elicit them from a variety of intervention types is warranted.