Dual case study proposal

A Dual Case Study: A Comparison on Attitude towards treatment and cruelty to Dogs and Cats

A Dual Case Study Proposal: A Comparison between a First World Country

and A Developing Country’s Attitude towards treatment of and animal

cruelty to Dogs and Cats

Maria Helga MelgarMBA Candidate

Business Information and Decision Making (MGMT 5500)August 06, 2015


“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress, can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”

– Mahatma Gandhi

https://youtu.be/PmzQHZ9lM6k

https://youtu.be/IKQcPBOcMJA


The Positive News

https://youtu.be/LSG_wBiTEE8

https://youtu.be/PmiAcIQjEJ0


The Negative News > United StatesWarning: Some images or videos may be graphic.


https://youtu.be/nHulUVkj4Ec


Warning: Some images or videos may be graphic.

The Negative News > Other Countries


https://youtu.be/gerA3kWXEz4


Statement of the ProblemThe literature reviewed in preparing this proposal yielded

specific data on the following concepts:

1) Animals as “sentient” beings

2) Current attitudes towards animals

3) Psychology of Animal Cruelty

4) International State of Animal Affairs



Statement of the Problem“HOW can they do that?”

Judging from the cases on animal cruelty worldwide, there appears to be a skew of the acts and instances in favor of developing countries over developed countries.

Literature review did not yield such a study in existence.



Purpose of the StudyTo prove with empirical data that there is a correlation between

the socio-economic status of a country and its attitude towards

the treatment of and animal cruelty to dogs and cats.

Future implications:

- Provide new insight into the problem of animal cruelty

globally.

- Provide empirical bases for betterment programs for

promotion of health programs, animal welfare and a more

humane world.

Unit of analysis : Cultural/country



Hypotheses1. There is a correlation between the socio-economic status

of a country known by its international development

category, and its attitude towards the treatment of and

dogs and cats.

2. There is a correlation between the socio-economic status

of a country known by its international development

category, and its attitude towards animal cruelty to dogs

and cats.



Who Would care?Humane Society International, Animal Rights Advocacy

groups, Sociologists, Psychologists, Culture experts, Health

agencies, Veterinary professionals, Animal Welfare Agencies,

Animal law, Pet Products and Services industries for

international marketing purposes, and all animal lovers.

Based on the comparative results and the surfaced variables,

there is an opportunity to expand on a specific variable if

necessary, for instance, concept of dogs as part of livestock.



Potential BiasPotential Bias

The researcher is an animal advocate, dog and cat

owner, and a firm believer in animal sentience.

The researcher will not participate directly in the

research conduct, relying on neutral experts in the

implementation and analyses of the findings.



Definition of Terms Animal Cruelty — acts of violence or neglect perpetrated against

animals. While fundamentally different at the source, all forms result in

the physical and/or emotional suffering of the animal victim (ASPCA)

Attitude - An attitude is "a relatively enduring organization of beliefs,

feelings, and behavioral tendencies towards socially significant objects,

groups, events or symbols" (Hogg, & Vaughan 2005, p. 150)

Treatment—the perceiver’s “thoughts and feelings about themselves

that are derived from past experiences, especially the reactions of

others” (Swann & Read, 1981, p. 352).



Definition of Terms Developed country -- While there is no one, set definition of a developed

economy it typically refers to a country with a relatively high level of

economic growth and security. Some of the most common criteria for

evaluating a country's degree of development are per capita income or

gross domestic product (GDP), level of industrialization, general

standard of living and the amount of widespread infrastructure

(Investopedia.com, 2015)

Developing country -- Developing countries are defined according to their

Gross National Income (GNI) per capita per year. Countries with a GNI of

US$ 11,905 and less are defined as developing (The World Bank, 2013).

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/percapita.asp

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gdp.asp

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/standard-of-living.asp



Literature ReviewAnimals as “sentient” beings.

Passantino, A. (2008). Companion Animals: An Examination of their

Legal Classification in Italy and the Impact on their Welfare, Actuality

and Prospective. Journal of Animal Law, IV, 59-60. 015. Descriptive.

Expert article/paper – analysis of “State-Regions Agreement on

Companion Animal Welfare and Pet Therapy.

Low, P. (2012). The Cambridge Declaration of Consciousness in Non-

Human Animals. Retrieved August 3, 2015. Declaration. Secondary

data. Expert paper – presented at the Francis Crick Memorial

Conference signed in the presence of Stephen A. Hawking.



Current Attitudes towards Animals Blaisdell, J. (1999). The Rise of Man's Best Friend: The Popularity of Dogs as Companion

Animals in Late Eighteenth-Century London as Reflected by the Dog Tax of 1796.

Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals Anthroz

Jour Inter Peo Ani, 12(2), 76-87. Secondary data. Article summation from research from

records, references cited in work.

Sullivan, Diane, and Holly Vietzke. "An Animal is not an iPod." Journal of Animal Law IV

(2008): 41-42. Print. Expert review, published.

Taylor, N., & Signal, T. (2009). Pet, Pest, Profit: Isolating Differences in Attitudes

towards the Treatment of Animals. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The

Interactions of People & Animals Anthroz Jour Inter Peo Ani, 22(2), 129-13 (Australia).

Buddhism and Animals. Religions. BBC Online. 2011. Presents Buddhist attitude

towards animals. Retrieved from:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/buddhistethics/animals.shtml

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/buddhistethics/animals.shtml



Psychology of Animal Cruelty

Furnham, A., Mcmanus, C., & Scott, D. (2003). Personality, empathy and attitudes

to animal welfare. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of

People & Animals Anthroz Jour Inter Peo Ani, 16(2), 135-146. Descriptive.

explained. Precisely what variables/factors are important in predicting attitudes

to animals have yet to be discovered.

Baldry, A. (2004). The Development of the P.E.T. Scale for the Measurement of

Physical and Emotional Tormenting Against Animals in Adolescents. Society &

Animals, 1-17. Descriptive study. The Physical and Emotional Tormenting Against

Animals Scale (P.E.T.) is a new self-administered scale to measure physical and

emotional abuse against animals among adolescents. The scale measures

different dimensions of animal abuse, ranging from mild to more severe:

bothering, tormenting, hitting, harming, and being cruel to an animal.



Tallichet, Suzanne E., Hensley, Christopher, O’Bryan, Adam, & Hassel, Heidi

(2005). Targets for Cruelty: Demographic and Situational Factors Affecting the

Type of Animal Abused. Criminal Justice Studies, Vol.18, Issue 2, p173-182, 10p.

Descriptive study, assessing the impact of demographic characteristics and

situational factors on the type of animal abused among incarcerated inmates in a

Southern state.

Siebert, C. (2010, June 13). The Animal-Cruelty Syndrome. The New York Times,

MM42-MM42. Descriptive. Expert article. From collective secondary, empirical

data. References in article. The link between animal abuse and interpersonal

violence is becoming so well established that many U.S. communities now cross-

train social-service and animal-control agencies in how to recognize signs of

animal abuse as possible indicators of other abusive behaviors.



International State of Animal Affairs.

Jensen Kerr, Andrew, and Yu Dan. "Tradition as Precedent: Articulating Animal

Law Reform in China." Journal of Animal and Natural Resource Law XI (2015):

71. Print. Expert article (descriptive).

Rahman, S.A., Walker, L. & Ricketts, W. (2005). Global Perspectives on animal

welfare: Asia, Far East, and Oceania. Revue Scientifique et Technique de

L’Office International des Epizooties, 24(2), 597-610. Descriptive.

Rahman, S. (2008). Transport of Animals for Slaughter: Animal welfare issues

and perspectives in developing countries. Proceedings, The 15th Congress of

FAVA, S63-S66. Descriptive. Conference paper. Secondary Data. Animal

Welfare Organizations will have to play a key role in the education of the

stakeholders in the proper methods of animal welfare and act as



Bendixsen, T. (2014, May 16). There is Hope for the Victims of the Vietnam

Dog Meat Trade. Retrieved August 1, 2015. Discusses the origin of dog

meat trade in Vietnam and why there is hope for change.

Ortega-Pacheco, A., Rodriguez-Buenfil, J., Bolio-Gonzalez, M., Sauri-Arceo,

C., Jiménez-Coello, M., & Forsberg, C. (2007). A Survey of Dog Populations

in Urban and Rural Areas of Yucatan, Mexico. Anthrozoos: A

Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals Anthroz

Jour Inter Peo Ani, 20(3), 261-274. Retrieved August 1, 2015.



Research DesignResearch DesignDescriptive, Case Study Strategy

Operationalize with dimensions partially based on World

Animal Protection’s Animal Protection Index (API)

indicators, with additional characteristics based on review

of various literature in the review.

http://api.worldanimalprotection.org/compare

*secondary data





Dimensions/CharacteristicsPresence of animal welfare support system

Support for the Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare

Laws against causing animal suffering

Protecting companion animals

Protecting animals used for draught and recreation

Governance structures and systems

Government accountability for animal welfare



Animal welfare standards

OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) animal

welfare standards

Reporting on progress

Providing humane education

Education on animal care and protection including

population control

Promoting communication and awareness

Recognizing dogs and cats as pets



Surface independent variablesPredicted

Cultural beliefs and practices

Location of residence - City or Urban

Past ownership experience of dogs and/or cats

Direct or indirect experience with dogs and/or cats

Socio-economic status - employed or unemployed

Household size

Population density of stray dogs and cats

Educational achievement

Recognition of animal sentience

View of dogs and cats – pets, property or pest



MethodologyStructured, closed questionnaire tested for content validity

(cross-cultural equivalence)

Combination approach:

United States:

Divide into urban (city) and rural samples

City - self-administered, electronic

Urban - Mailed out questionnaires will sent out.



Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Divide into urban (city) and rural samples

City – self-administered, mailed out

Rural - Personally administered questionnaires

Assumptions:

Literacy rate of rural subjects in Vietnam

Internet Access – as of 2012, only 30% of the entire $90+ million

population

Time Horizon: cross section

Secondary information - statistics on each country’s Department of

Health, agencies animal welfare and animal protection agencies.



SamplingComplex Random Sampling – Stratified random

sampling on the basis of geographical area.

Sample size of at least 385 per country for (95%

confidence)

- Efficiency. Scientific Sample Size Table (Krejcie

and Morgan, 1970)

*384 on population of 1,000,000



Instrumentation Measure attitude and animal cruelty tendencies

Modified closed, structured questionnaire in a modified scale

Use combination of:

Boat Inventory on Animal-Related Experiences (Boat, 1998)

Animal Attitude Scale (AAS) (Herzog, Betchart & Pittman, 1991)

The P.E.T. Scale (Physical and Emotional Tormenting animals)

for animal cruelty.

Content validity and reliability utilizing Face validity and

equivalence.



Ethical ConsiderationsData Collection and Analysis Procedures

US urban dwelling subjects - Online or electronic

access

US rural dwelling subjects – Mailed out

Vietnam rural dwelling subjects – mailed out self-

administered questionnaire

Vietnam rural dwelling subjects – Personally

administered questionnaire



Ethical ConsiderationsProtection of Human Rights

Ethical guidelines, following US Institutional Review Board

(IRB) and Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Health and Ministry of

Health (International Compilation of Human Research

Standards)



Projected AnalysisData Analysis

Quantitative

Tables for coded results Parts 1 and 2 – Attitude

Frequency from Part 3 – Animal Cruelty

Scatter graphs and tables

demographic information vs. yielded results attitude from treatment dimensions.

Animal cruelty - dimensions

Use of pie chart for demographic breakdown and found applicable variables, e.g.

past experience with pet

Projected

Predictive Findings on Hypotheses



“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help themat least don't hurt them.”

Dalai Lama

Cruelty might be very human, and it might be cultural, but it's not acceptable.

Jodie Foster

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/dalai_lama.html

