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Because of the intense contact between stockpersons and pigs, it is important to identify those attributes of human behaviour which affect growth and reproduction in pigs and also the origins of those attributes. It has been proposed that because a stockperson's behaviour towards animals is largely under his/her control, this behaviour is strongly influenced by the attitudes the stockperson holds about the animals. The aim in this study was to determine the interrelationships between stockperson attitude, stockperson behaviour and other variables including job-related variables and empathy. A total of 87 stockpersons from a large commercial piggery participated in the study in two cohorts (groups which were tested at different times) of 44 and 43 stockpersons, respectively. Most stockpersons were male, with four females in the first cohort and three in the second. A computerised questionnaire was developed …