The connection between working in a slaughterhouse or as an animal farmer and an individual’s attitudes towards animals and their likelihood for aggressive behavior is explored in this study. Results showed that while those employed in these professions have poor attitudes towards animals, they are no more likely than a control group to have a propensity for aggression. However, when slaughterhouse workers and farmers were examined separately, those employed in a meat processing plant showed a significantly higher predisposition for aggression, most notably in the areas of physical aggression and hostility. These findings speak to existing concerns about the effects this brutal industry has on humans, other animals, and the communities it calls home.

[Abstract excerpted from original source.]

“Previous research has examined a range of demographic variables that have been shown to influence an individual’s attitude toward, and in turn their treatment of, animals. Little is known, however, about the effect of certain occupations upon these attitudes. The current study examines attitudes toward animals and the propensity for aggression within a sample of farmers and meatworkers in Queensland, Australia. Recent findings and publicity around the effects of employment (and cases of deliberate animal cruelty) within these industries indicates that this is an area in need of investigation from both human and animal welfare perspectives. The implications of the current findings for the meat-working industry and for the field of human-animal studies are discussed.”