Patrica Pendry
Meet Patricia Pendry, professor of human development.
She teaches in the Department of Human Development, where professors and students study how children, youth, adults, and families develop, change, and face challenges throughout life.
She favors a hands-on approach that doesn't just involve memorizing information and passing tests; instead, her classes promote mastery by helping her students to understand complex concepts and use them to solve problems.
One way she does this is through the "RealKids" assignment where students complete 20 hours of service learning by working with children, giving them the opportunity to apply what they learn in the classroom. This hands-on teaching philosophy has made her popular with students.
Not only that, quite a few of Professor Pendry's students get to work with her on some pretty interesting research.
The benefits of horsing around
Pendry conducts a study that examines the effects of PATH to Success — a local equine-assisted learning program — on various aspects of child development.
"My research is focused on finding out if equine assisted activities can prevent and alleviate stress in children," she said. "I am particularly interested in the physiological ramifications of stress in children."
PATH to Success was developed as an extension of the successful PATH program, which stands for "Palouse Area Therapeutic Horsemanship."
WSU students help with the research
The 12 members of Professor Pendry's Human Development 485 research practicum class, Human Development 485, work with PATH to Success while earning course credits. Their lab group meets once a week. Other students are volunteering their time just because they're interested in working with horses and children.
The WSU students involved in the research project do a variety of things.
Some take saliva samples from the children in PATH to Success and prepare it to be measured for stress hormones like cortisol and alpha-amylase.
Some observe the children and document their interactions with the horses, while others work directly with the children and horses as facilitators in the program.
Others learn how to collect and enter behavioral data and conduct basic statistical analyses, and others learn how to do things like conduct reliability coding, do child assessments, and all aspects of data collection and management.
Her research — and yours — gets visible results
"We use the wonderful qualities of horses, such as the way they are in tune with our emotions, how they're non-judgmental and very in tune with their environment," says Pendry.
The primary goal of the program is to prevent and alleviate child adjustment problems by improving chldren's social competence, behavior, and ability to respond to common life stress. Pendry hopes the program will help children develop the ability to cope in a positive and productive way that is built on resilience, competence, and the ability to make good choices.
While the program is not therapy or counseling, there are positive effects on the children and their stress hormone levels.
"If you put the children in a group where teamwork and controlling behavior is required, they improve on their social competence and find difference ways to deal with stress," says Pendry.
Observing the horses and their response to the children helps the children understand themselves better.
The more people involved, the better
The 12-week PATH to Success program is interdisciplinary, meaning it involves various groups on campus, such as the College of Education and the School of Veterinary Medicine.
PATH to Success was developed in 2008 by Sue Jacobson, coordinator of People-Pet-Partnership at WSU's College of Veterinary Medicine, and Phyllis Erdman, professor of Counseling Psychology and Associate Dean of the College of Education.
Bringing together a variety of perspectives and levels of expertise to the project benefits everyone involved and broadens the scope of the project.
While the children are learning some horse savvy and how to deal with stress, college students — in addition to enjoying themselves — are learning research methods and how to collect data.
The children in the project learn how to halter and lead the horses, how to groom them, and how to ride. They play games like "red light-green light" and go through obstacle courses. They become aware of how their own behavior affects the horse, and how to cooperate with the horse and with others.
"For example," says Pendry, "if a horse pins its ears, we ask the child what they think it means. The child might respond that the horse is trying to hear better. But then we'll say that 'no, actually the horse is becoming agitated'."
"We then ask the child what are some of the things they do when they feel agitated. This helps them understand themselves and how to control their behaviors."
You're working on NIH-funded research
Pendry received a $100,000 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant for her research. She was one of only three professors in the U.S. granted funds for a new category of NIH funding called "human-animal interaction in child health and development."
And WSU is uniquely suited for the research because of its already successful equine therapeutic riding program.
"I get calls and emails all the time from students from various different departments," said Pendry, who has ridden horses most of her life.
"Many students want to participate in equine related disciplines as well as the human sciences."
"My research is focused on finding out if equine assisted activities can prevent and alleviate stress in children."