Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies and Autism Ranking:

Future Research

Summary of Existing Research

There is a reasonable amount of research evidence (10 group studies and eight single-case design studies with three or more participants) into the use of equine-assisted activities and therapies for autistic individuals.

This research suggests that therapeutic horseback riding may provide some benefits to some autistic children and young people.  Those benefits include increased social communication and interaction, alongside increased concentration and decreased hyperactivity and irritability. 

There is insufficient evidence to determine if therapeutic horseback riding provides any benefits to autistic adults.

There is insufficient evidence to determine if hippotherapy provides any benefits to autistic individuals.

There is no research to suggest other forms of equine-assisted activities and therapies, such as equine-assisted psychotherapy, provide any benefits to autistic individuals.

Recommendations for Future Research

There is a need for more research into equine-assisted activities and therapies which uses scientifically robust, experimental methodologies with larger numbers of autistic participants.  

That research should 

• Compare different forms of EAAT including therapeutic horseback riding, hippotherapy and equine-assisted psychotherapy.
• Compare EAAT with other interventions which are designed to provide the same benefits.
• Include a wider range of participants including adults and individuals from ethnic minority backgrounds.
• Identify if specific groups on the autism spectrum are more likely to benefit from specific forms of EEAT than other groups on the spectrum.
• Identify if EAAT have any beneficial or harmful effects in the medium to long term.
• Involve autistic people (and parents and carers) in the design, development and evaluation of those studies.

Updated

17 Jun 2022

Last Review

01 Dec 2018

Next Review

01 Sep 2024