Dr Janette Young

Member of ARENA (Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity)

Hello!

Welcome to my home page :)

My research area is pets (the animals we share our lives with) and people, and I teach in the area of health promotion. For me 'health promotion' offers creative  edges on thinking about health; beyond merely aiming to increase length of life to how we think of health as justice, creativity and thriving. I have a particular interest in mental health and wellbeing, ageing, and human:animal intersections and how these cross species connections impact human health. My focus is 'salutogenic' (what creates health?) as versus pathogenic (how do we prevent disease/injury).

In my past life I was a social worker working in aged care, and worked on a range of projects in state government on issues such as domestic violence (including aboriginal family violence), homelessness (women, families and violence related), prisoner health, primary health care, education pathways, community capacity, and a range of other topics. This breadth of experiences shapes my interests in health as a complex outcome of individual and societal factors. 

As a social worker I learnt that caring about people might mean caring about the animals that they share their lives with. This interest in the way humans and animals live their lives together has become the core focus of my research. To date my research includes  exploring the relationships between pets and older people (including suicide protection), the intersection of pets, disability, and assistance animals, and the concept of animal leisure. My  aim is to identify how we can better integrate pets into human society as a means of promoting wellbeing for  those people for whom this is health promoting, keeping in mind the needs and rights of these animals.

In partnership with the Society for Companion Animals Studies (UK) and a team of species expert veterinarians, agedcare and consumer consultant we developed a risk management tool to SAFEly enable people living in communal residential settings (nursing homes, group houses etc) to bring their pets into care. The tool provides guidance for how the needs of owners, animals, and people who may not like animals (!) can be considered, facilitating the continuation of cross-species relationships and preventing homelessness or even euthanasia of pet animals.

You can access the tool via the Society for Companion Animals http://www.scas.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/UniSA-Safe-Animal-Friendly-Environments-7-2022-LowRes.pdf - I would love to know if and how people are using it.

I write and present in the field of animals, leisure and critical thinking (do/should animals such as those in captivity have leisure?) and often I use history and historical changes to reflect on this intersection. Who could believe nowadays that animal welfare trumped child welfare in the not so distant past? And what might this reality offer in terms of predicting and maybe even guiding future changes - in particular re the position of animals in human societies. It is an exciting space to be exploring at this time both academically but also practically as the way we think of animals seems to be shifting yet again. 

I have a tangential but linked research focus as well on on religious engagement, namely breaking the myth that ageing churches = dying churches. The research we have been doing suggests that ageing churches may also reflect re-engagement of people as they age and renew past activities that they were often too busy to pursue in the busy-ness of life. 

PS this is Jack - my 11year old papillion.

Australian Health Promotion Association - SA Branch President  2014 to 2016

Animal Therapies Ltd - National Director (Health Promotion portfolio) 2021 - present

Qualifications

• Doctor of Philosophy University of South Australia

• Master of Public Management Flinders University

• Graduate Diploma in Public Policy and Management Flinders University

• Bachelor of Social Work South Australian Institute of Technology