Irish Equine Industry Stakeholder Perspectives of Objective Technology for Biomechanical Analyses in the Field

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Technology is becoming increasingly popular across scientific and general population groups. Pedometers, activity and health trackers, are widely used and commercially available. However, these technologies do not appear to be used in field-based equestrian health and performance. Irish industry stakeholders were interviewed regarding their perceived value of technology in equestrian sport. The interviews resulted in four primary themes around horse health, training and management. The movement assessment of the horse is undertaken subjectively through the eye and is incorporated into a holistic management structure that is based on years of experience. There is no such thing as the perfect horse and each one must be treated as an individual. The stakeholders are aware of technologies for movement analysis but demonstrate a healthy scepticism towards new, unproven technologies. Finally, the economic impact of applying technology across the herd is a major barrier to technology use. The results of this study suggest technology design needs to take place in consultation with industry stakeholders to improve field-based use. ABSTRACT: Wearable sensing technologies are increasingly used in human and equine gait research to improve ecological validity of research findings. It is unclear how these tools have penetrated the equine industry or what perspectives industry stakeholders’ hold in relation to these relatively new devices. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Irish equine industry stakeholders to understand their perception of objective tools for biomechanical analysis in the field. The study participants came from professional/elite backgrounds in both the sport horse (n = 6) and thoroughbred (n = 6) sectors. The interview data were analysed using thematic analysis, resulting in four analytical themes. The first theme conveys the importance of tacit knowledge and experience in the holistic analysis of a horse. Theme two highlights that the perfect horse does not exist therefore, equine athlete management is complex and requires a multi-layered problem-solving approach. Theme three describes an awareness among stakeholders of technologies, however they are sceptical of their value. The final theme identified that one of the key barriers to technology adoption is the economic value of the horse and the cost of implementing technology herd-wide. Our findings highlight the need for a user-centred design in this domain, which requires greater consultation and learning between technology developers and equine stakeholders to develop fit-for-purpose analysis and monitoring tools.