Beyond Prisonization: Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) as a Salutogenic Device for the Reactivation of Agency and Responsibility

Introduction. This paper explores Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) as a salutogenic device in prison settings, drawing on the framework of reflective practitioner inquiry. The authors critically analyse the effects of prisonization, the progressive erosion of identity and personal resources induced by incarceration, proposing AAI as a possible device for the reactivation of agency and responsibility. Method. The paper describes the implementation of an Animal-Assisted Education (AAE) programme conducted in a correctional facility in southern Italy with a group of ten male inmates serving definitive sentences. The evaluation, conducted by a multi-professional team through triangulated observation, individual interviews, and a session diary structured around four clinical indicators, allowed the experience to be organised, through a retrospective application of Antonovsky’s salutogenic framework, around six relational axes of observed change. Results. The authors observe, in the cases followed, signs of reactivation of personal and relational resources suppressed by incarceration along the axes of the relationship with the animal, the therapist, the peer group, custodial staff, family members, and the organisational system, with preliminary signs of generalisation of acquired behaviours beyond the setting. Conclusions. Findings, intended as interpretive hypotheses rather than demonstrated outcomes, are discussed together with the methodological limitations of the study and implications for future research.

Keywords: Animal-Assisted Interventions, prison, prisonization, salutogenesis, agency, animal welfare.

Annalisa Castrechini, Emanuele Foglia, Oltre la prisonization: gli Interventi Assistiti con gli Animali (IAA) come dispositivo salutogenico per la riattivazione dell’agency e della responsabilità in "PSICOLOGIA DELLA SALUTE" 3/2026, pp 28-41, DOI: 10.3280/PDS2026-003004