We examined judges’ perceptions of facility dogs used to comfort witnesses during testimony in courtrooms. Content analysis of an open-ended survey question revealed that most judges support facility dog use to some degree, especially for children and in family, dependency, or juvenile courts. Perceived benefits included providing emotional support for witnesses who then could be calmer and provide better testimony (e.g., more accurate, more truthful, clearer). Perceived drawbacks included potential disruption, access issues for those allergic to or afraid of dogs, and bias. We discuss future research and implications for judges, advocates, and researchers.

中文翻译：

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法官在法庭上对设施犬的看法

我们检查了法官对在法庭作证期间用来安慰证人的设施犬的看法。一项开放式调查问题的内容分析显示，大多数法官在一定程度上支持设施犬的使用，尤其是在儿童和家庭、受抚养人或少年法庭中。感知的好处包括为证人提供情感支持，然后他们可以更冷静并提供更好的证词（例如，更准确、更真实、更清晰）。可察觉的缺点包括潜在的干扰、对狗过敏或害怕狗的人的准入问题以及偏见。我们讨论未来的研究和对法官、倡导者和研究人员的影响。