Lab Member Spotlight: Dr. Nikki Bennett presented at the American Psychological Association (APA) 2026 Annual Conference
- 2 days ago
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Dr. Nikki Bennett, Postdoctoral Researcher, presented research from the Veterinary Psychology Lab at the 2026 APA Conference held August 6-8 in Washington D.C. Poster presentation titled, “Digital Intervention Targeting Burden Transfer in Veterinary Healthcare Providers: Naturalistic Examination of Program Implementation,” examined the real-world implementation of Unburdened–Online, a digital education program designed to reduce work-related stress among veterinary professionals.
Burden transfer is the stress experienced by veterinary staff during difficult client interactions, particularly when clients demonstrate behaviors suggestive of caregiver burden (e.g., frequently contacting their veterinary hospital). Research from the Veterinary Psychology Lab has shown that the Unburdened program, whether administered as an in-person or teleconferenced workshop, is efficacious in reducing burden transfer. The research presented by Dr. Bennett evaluated the program’s effectiveness when implemented as a self-guided program in real-world veterinary settings. In collaboration with a large corporate veterinary group, Unburdened–Online was provided to veterinary staff in 3 stages: Pilot, Administrative Mandate, and Administrative Encouragement.
Findings showed that designating the program as mandatory training showed the highest enrollment and completion of program modules but did not increase homework completion or program-specific user goals. Importantly, veterinary professionals who completed the program reported reductions in burden transfer, regardless of the program’s implementation context. These results suggest that Unburdened–Online can be effective in improving veterinary professional wellbeing, particularly when working with clients who may be experiencing caregiver burden. Moving forward, the Veterinary Psychology Lab has begun testing a version of this program for use in training programs for veterinary professionals (i.e., DVM and RVT programs) and is seeking opportunities to evaluate program use across diverse veterinary settings (e.g., general versus specialty veterinary practice).
This presentation was part of the APA Animal Summit hosted by APA Division 6 (Society for Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology), providing an opportunity to connect researchers and professionals across disciplines. The Animal Summit highlighted work being completed to understand how human-animal interactions influence psychological wellbeing, as well as how findings can be translated into clinical practice.
