@Article{ijmhp.2022.021361,
AUTHOR = {Mengxian Zhao, Yonghao You, Jinming Li, Sean Healy, Alyx Taylor, Zhihao Zhang, Linlin Li, Liye Zou},
TITLE = {The Effects of Therapeutic Horseback Riding Program on Motor Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder},
JOURNAL = {International Journal of Mental Health Promotion},
VOLUME = {24},
YEAR = {2022},
NUMBER = {4},
PAGES = {475--489},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/IJMHP/v24n4/47984},
ISSN = {2049-8543},
ABSTRACT = {Therapeutic horseback riding (THR) as an animal-assisted intervention is one of the innovative approaches emerging in the treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The current study was designed to investigate the effects of a 12-week, twice a week THR program on motor skills in sixty-eight children with ASD aged
5–10 years old. All participants selected met the DSM-V criteria for ASD, and a total of fifty-three participants
completed the study. A randomized controlled trial design was utilized for the study. Data was collected via a
pre-THR test, interim-THR test, and post-THR test to investigate the possible changes in motor skills throughout
the 12-week THR program. Results showed that the THR program significantly improved overall motor skills
across time points (<i>p</i> < 0.05) and sub-skills of run, gallop and two-hand catch (as compared to the control group,
<i>p</i> < 0.05). In conclusion, the THR program may be an effective option for improving motor skills in children with
ASD and further investigation with a longer period of intervention is warranted.},
DOI = {10.32604/ijmhp.2022.021361}
}