Hippotherapists working with children with disabilities: features of motivation and emotional intelligence

the purpose of this research is to study the characteristics of motivation and emotional intelligence in equine therapists working with children with disabilities. An empirical study was conducted on a sample of 185 people, of which 32 were hippotherapists and 153 were other specialists working with children with disabilities, using diagnostic techniques such as a) A. Mehrabian's test questionnaire to measure achievement motivation (adapted by M.Sh. Magomed-Eminov); b) a method for diagnosing emotional intelligence "EmIn" (D.V. Lyusin); c) the life satisfaction Index test (IHU) (adapted by N.V. Panina). It has been established that most specialists working with children with disabilities (both hippotherapists and specialists in other areas of correctional work) have an average level of expression of the integral indicator of the general level of emotional intelligence, which indicates a moderately expressed ability to differentiate their own emotions and the emotions of other people and an average level of ability to manage other people's emotions. The absence of significant differences between the indicators of general emotional intelligence and all its components (both in interpersonal and intrapersonal EI) in hippotherapists has been proven compared to specialists in other areas of correctional work with children with disabilities. It was found that almost all specialists working with children with disabilities (both hippotherapists and specialists in other areas of correctional work) have the dominant motive of activity as the motive of avoiding failure; this may indicate a high degree of responsibility imposed by working with children with disabilities, in accordance with the main commandment of a doctor – "do no harm". The absence of significant differences between the indicators of motivation to avoid failure in hippotherapists compared to specialists in other areas of correctional work with children with disabilities has been proven. It has been revealed that most specialists working with children with disabilities (both hippotherapists and specialists in other areas of correctional work) have a high level of the life satisfaction index, which means that they all have a satisfactory general psychological state, are highly satisfied with the situation in their lives and their role in this situation in general. Hippotherapists have shown a positive relationship between the overall level of life satisfaction and such components of emotional intelligence as interpersonal emotional intelligence, understanding of emotions and emotion management: the better the hippotherapist's interpersonal emotional intelligence, understanding and emotion management, the higher his life satisfaction. Hippotherapists have shown a positive relationship between such a component of life satisfaction as interest in life (the opposite of apathy) with general emotional intelligence and such components as emotion management and intrapersonal emotional intelligence: the higher the levels of general emotional interpersonal emotional intelligence, the higher the hippotherapists' interest in life.

hippotherapy, hippotherapist, children with disabilities, emotional intelligence, life satisfaction index, interpersonal emotional intelligence, intrapersonal emotional intelligence, emotion management, motivation, motivation to avoid failure, motivation to achieve success