You might say that Dr. John-Tyler Binfet, an associate prof in the Faculty of Education at UBC, Okanagan, has a PhD in kindness. He studies the topic of kindness, having conducted interviews with over 3,000 children and teens about what it means; developed the School Kindness Scale to test students’ perceptions of kindness in schools; and has now written an educators guide of the what, how and why of cultivating this prosocial trait, Cultivating Kindness (UTP $34.95). It’s a complicated subject and there are different types and definitions of kindness. It also has many benefits, including those who engage in kindness, as well as the recipients, report being happier. Binfet’s message to educators is not to wait for “random” acts of kindness, rather foster intentional kindness in the classroom.

Dr. Binfet also studies the effects of canine-assisted interventions on undergraduate student well-being. He is the director of UBC’s Building Academic Retention through K9’s (BARK) program. Founded in 2012, BARK routinely sees 60+ therapy dogs brought to campus to support students’ stress reduction and overall well-being. He co-authored with E. Hartwig Canine-assisted interventions: A comprehensive guide to credentialing therapy dog teams (New York: Routledge, 2019).

BOOKS

Cultivating Kindness (UTP, 2022) $34.95 9781487525026

Canine-assisted interventions: A comprehensive guide to credentialing therapy dog teams (New York: Routledge, 2019). Co-authored with E. Hartwig. 9781138338319

[BCBW 2022]