Reactions against Farm Animal Abuse: The Role of Animal Attitude and Speciesism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5944/ap.20.2.39324Abstract
The defense of animal rights has contributed to questioning the relationship between humans and animals focusing on animal abuse by humans. Current Spanish law has been reformed to safeguard animals that are either protected fauna or that live under human control, no longer considering them as things but as sentient beings. The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship of speciesism and animal attitudes with people’s perceptions of farm animal abuse, considering the role of gender and place of residence and controlling social desirability. A sample of 457 people, aged between 18 and 73 years old, 73% women, participated in this study. There were 63.7% of participants who lived in urban areas and the rest in rural areas of a territory highly protected by environmental law. They answered an online questionnaire including scenarios of farm animal abuse, the Animal Attitude Scale, Speciesism Scale and Social Desirability Scale. The results showed that negative perceptions of farm animal abuse and the willingness to intervene to stop it were more related to animal attitude than to speciesism. Furthermore, although participants living in rural areas leaned more towards speciesism, they did not have more negative attitudes than those living in urban areas. The results are discussed in terms of whether the law should consider all animals alike, irrespective of people’s perceptions, as with different human ethnicities and genders or whether distinctions should be made redefining animal instrumentality in terms of biodiversity and sustainability.
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