‘Crazy cat lady’ stereotype is nonsense, say scientists, as dog owners found to be just as neurotic
The stereotypical ‘cat lady’, who lives a solitary life obsessing over her pets to the detriment of human relationships, simply does not exist, a new study has shown.
Researchers who were looking into whether pet lovers are more likely to pick up distress signals of animals, inadvertently discovered that dog and cat owners do not differ in levels of depression, anxiety or loneliness.
The authors from the University of California, Los Angeles, said there was no evidence that cat lovers were more depressed, anxious and alone, even though they are often ascribed such negative personality traits.
As early as 1872, the New York Times ran an article headlined ‘Cats and Craziness’ in which the editors laid out the erratic personality of the cat-lover compared to the more rational dog owner.
Since then, several online surveys have suggested that ‘cat people’ are more neurotic, introverted, less agreeable and less conscientious.
In contrast, owning a dog is ‘often viewed as ‘healthy’ and ‘beneficial in motivating owners to get extra physical activity’, the report authors said.
A study of Facebook updates from users talking about their pets, showed those mentioning cats were more likely to be single, neurotic and introverted, while dog owners had no specific personality traits which set them apart. However most of the studies are self-reported and traits were not scientifically measured.
For the new study, researchers clinically assessed loneliness, anxiety and depression for 261 dog and cat owners using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire and the Edinburgh Depression Scale.
“We found no evidence to support the 'cat lady' stereotype: cat owners did not differ from others on self-reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, or their experiences in close relationships,” the authors concluded.
“We suggest that our findings are, therefore, not consistent with a description of cat-owners as depressed, anxious or as having difficulty with human relationships.”
The research also suggests that cat and dog owners are more sensitive than those without pets to noises from the animals which show they are experiencing a negative emotion.
“This may be because pet owners have more experience interacting with these animals, or because they are initially more responsive to these animals and therefore seek them as pets,” the study states.
The research was published in Royal Society Open Science.
