Equestrian Health, Wellbeing, and Performance – Human Factors in Equestrianism (HFE)

Background
Equestrianism is a novel activity involving complex communication between horses and humans (referred to as equestrians). Horses are engaged by equestrians for human benefit in labor, sport, entertainment, and leisure activities worldwide, often having an important standing within our culture. Equestrians are responsible for the management, training, welfare and wellbeing of the horses in their care, at times at the expense of their own health, welfare and wellbeing. Human factors in the horse-human dyad are often neglected within research which more regularly focuses on the horse. Much existing research concerns maximising the athletic potential or optimising the health and welfare of the horse. While the horse should indeed be the priority in many cases, human factors should not be ignored, as equestrians’ attitudes, knowledge, beliefs, culture, skills, physiological and psychological fitness can all have a meaningful impact on their own lived experience and subsequently on that of the horses within their care or influence. To future-proof the welfare, well-being and performance of equestrians and their horses, emerging research areas suggest that we have a duty of care to be the best version of ourselves as is possible. This should involve equestrians continuing to evolve their skills in diverse areas such as management, rider skills, coaching, nutrition, training, health, injury management and fitness of themselves in addition to the horse. This special issue will bring together a diverse range of research outputs focused on human factors within equestrian research, providing a “go-to” open access resource for equestrians wishing to enhance how they “show up” for their horses.

Aims
Human factors are often placed behind horse factors in research, yet our health, skills, wellbeing, and knowledge have a meaningful impact on our interactions with horses. Understanding how we can continue to evolve our skills, understanding, and abilities in our decision-making and interactions with horses should be imperative. Recent advances in equestrian research include breast and bra issues, human injury, knowledge and understanding of training approaches, motivations behind equine management decision-making, and coach influence. This area of study is a dynamic and exciting topic that has the potential to enhance the lived experience of our horses. We welcome diverse submission types, including original research, qualitative studies, and comprehensive reviews.

Potential Topics

Factors influencing equine management decision-making
Equestrian injury, recovery, and fitness
Equestrian skills development
Rider performance
Equestrian nutrition
Equestrian participation
Equestrian coaching
Para-equestrian sport
Human behaviour change for optimal equine welfare
Equestrian education
Barriers to equestrian participation
Equestrian workforce welfare and wellbeing
Equestrian athlete development
Equestrian cultures
Sustainable equestrian management

Special Issue Editorial Board

Lead Editor

Lorna Cameron, Hartpury University and Hartpury College, Gloucester, United Kingdom
Institutional Webpage; ORCID

Associate Editors

Dr. Emma Davies, Hartpury University and Hartpury College, Gloucester, United Kingdom
Institutional Webpage; Google Scholar; ORCID

Dr. Victoria Lewis, Hartpury University and Hartpury College, Gloucester, United Kingdom
Institutional Webpage; ORCID

Guest Editors

Dr. Agnes Olivier, Institut Français du Cheval et de l'Équitation (IFCE), France
Institutional Webpage; ORCID

Dr. Russell Best, Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec), New Zealand
Institutional Webpage; Google Scholar; ORCID

Special Issue Timeline

Submission Deadline: 31 January 2027
Publication Dates: Articles will be published on a rolling basis starting January 2027.
Average Time to 1st Editorial Decision: 6–8 weeks