LAPS SA: Measuring Attachment to Dogs and Cats Among South American Countries

Human biological and cultural evolution is tied to the relationships established with other animals. Attachment is one of the mechanisms established between dogs/cats and humans and allows the generation of affective bonds and close proximity. Many instruments have been used to study attachment of people to their dogs/cats, such as the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS). Our aim was adapting LAPS for South American populations (Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Peru and Colombia), and its languages (Brazilian Portuguese and South American Spanish) and evaluating them with South American data. We translated and back translated the instrument, examined versions with a pilot sample and collected data from 2832 respondents (18-85 y.o.), who lived with at least one cat/dog. We report and compare findings from psychometric analyses of the two versions of LAPS using both classical test (coefficient alpha, confirmatory factor analysis) and item response theory (Rasch analysis) methodologies. Findings demonstrate the comparability of the versions while observing some minor differences in their dimensionality. As in the original LAPS, results suggest one main dimension (general attachment) that assesses the general relationship between a person and a companion animal. We suggest that using appropriate language (e.g., companions and guardians instead of pets and owners) will improve understanding. We emphasize the importance of adapting wording and content of research tools considering cultural aspects of the populations studied. We introduce LAPS SA (LAPS South America) as a unified instrument to measure attachment between people and companion animals. Implications for the use of LAPS SA and future research are discussed.