It can aid the training process by clarifying the roles of positive versus negative reinforcement, punishment, and by identifying stimuli that provoke unwanted responses or pain in horses.
Equitation science uses physiological measurements such as heart rate, blood, urine and saliva analyses to evaluate the comfort and stress level of the horse.
It also evaluates behavioural indicators of ineffective horse-rider communication and conflict such as teeth grinding, tail swishing, rearing or bucking.
Its mission is to promote and encourage the application of objective research and advanced practice which will ultimately improve the welfare of horses in their associations with humans.
During discussions following the Havemeyer Foundation Workshop on Horse Behavior and Welfare in Iceland in 2002, the idea of establishing a society devoted to equitation science was first raised.