JP Times on dolphin-assisted therapy

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http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?fl20030427a4.htm

 

Dolphin 'treatment' defies science

 

By MASAMI ITO

Staff writer

 

Michael Williams was born severely autistic. Even when

he was in his teens, he was unable to communicate,

other than through screeching, and his parents had to

be constantly on the alert for violent behavior.

Without warning, he would bang his head against

objects, bite into his own fingers or lash out at

others.

 

Michael's parents tried any treatment that seemed to

hold out the remotest hope of improving their son's

condition -- but to no avail.

 

Then, in their home state of Florida, they heard about

Betsy Smith -- one of the founders of dolphin-assisted

therapy (DAT) -- and went along to meet her.

 

Best known for its beneficial effects with autistic

children, DAT has also been used to help people with

Down's syndrome, attention-deficit disorder and

post-traumatic stress disorder. For these conditions,

it appears to be beneficial for both adults and

children.

 

Although there are various theories about why DAT

works, none of them have yet been scientifically

proved. Among these, perhaps the most obvious is the

unmistakable, and benign, " presence " these large,

powerful animals convey to people -- an emotional

sense of openness and " fellow-feeling " to which some

people may be more receptive than others.

 

" There actually is no evidence that DAT is better than

any other form of therapy, " says Smith in a phone

interview. " But there are a lot of promising

indications. "

 

Unlike other animal-assisted therapies, DAT is, of

course, conducted in water, which adds the element of

aquatic therapy. Furthermore, Smith points out, DAT is

different because of the way the dolphins respond.

 

" When you work with dogs, although they are very

effective, they will do the same task over and over

again, " says Smith. " But dolphins will spontaneously

change the activity many times. They often know before

you do that the child is bored. "

 

For 10 years after that first meeting with Michael's

parents, Smith worked with him and the dolphins. She

took it very slowly, first just introducing him to the

highly intelligent mammals, then gradually getting him

to splash the dolphins from the poolside, toss a ball

around with them and pet them as they came to meet

him.

 

Then, when Michael was finally allowed to go into the

water, he splashed around happily and mimicked the

dolphins' movements and even the clicking sounds they

make.

 

Over the years, and with regular DAT, Michael's

attention span improved remarkably. Whereas in the

beginning he could only concentrate on one thing for

five to 10 minutes, this eventually extended to up to

an hour. As well, it was obvious to everyone that

Michael's violent behavior almost completely ceased.

 

However, what was perhaps most gratifying for those

around him was that Michael eventually began to show

signs of emotion and would spontaneously embrace his

mother and kiss her -- something he had never done

before.

 

" It was overpowering because spontaneous emotion is

not something you find in autistic children, " says

Smith. " He was almost 20 then, and [his mother] had

never had that in her whole life. And it was

particularly poignant because it happened six months

before she died. She was able to have that time with

him and show emotion. "

 

Smith, who is the founding professor of the College of

Health and Urban Affairs at Florida International

University, began researching human-dolphin

interactions in the early 1970s. However, her work was

not taken seriously until the 1980s, when Boris

Levinson -- a pioneer of dog therapy for autistic

children -- took an interest in what she was doing and

began to promote it.

 

Since then, DAT has spread rapidly throughout the

United States.

 

Ironically, as it grew in popularity, so did DAT

business schemes. As many parents are willing to go to

any length to help their children with autism or other

conditions, they become easy prey to profit-making

ventures.

 

" People are now taking a lot of money for an unproven

therapy and some are taking advantage of vulnerable

people by pretending to be doing therapy, " says Smith.

" [in Florida] we worked with the dolphins, and we

never charged a penny for anything. All our therapists

volunteered their time, and all the money for the

project came from donations. "

 

Seeing captive dolphins being used merely as a means

to make money was more than Smith could stand. Ten

years ago, she stopped practicing DAT and

disassociated herself from the facility that she had

founded.

 

" Nobody is working with the dolphin and respecting it

as a sentient being, " says Smith.

 

" They are using them as disposable creatures that they

think they have a right to control. Dolphins should

not be kept in captivity for financial gain. "

 

Smith explains that what these people are doing is

behavior therapy -- treating the dolphins as a

Pavolian reward for the children. If, for example, the

child says a word correctly, then they will allow it

to feed, touch, or ride the dolphin.

 

" That is not dolphin-assisted therapy, " she says.

 

However, her withdrawal from working with dolphins

does not mean Smith has given up all hope for the

potential of DAT.

 

" I do plan to go back, " she says. " But not until I

find the appropriate setting, where I can work with

wild dolphins and where people are not trying to

capture them or disturbing their environment. "

 

The Japan Times: April 27, 2003

 

 

 

 

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