A Randomized Cross-over Exploratory Study of the Effect of Visiting Therapy Dogs on College Student Stress Before Final Exams

Abstract

This exploratory study investigated the effect of visiting therapy dogs on college-student perceived and physiological stress the week prior to final exams. Students (n = 78) were randomly assigned to order of a therapydog intervention and attention-control condition, each 15 minutes long. Students completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), a stress visual analog scale (SVAS), and provided saliva for measuring nerve growth factor (sNGF) and alpha amylase (sAA), prior to randomization. Saliva samples and SVAS were again collected after each condition. There was no effect of group order on demographics, PSS, or initial SVAS. Repeated measures models were used to analyze the complete data sets of 57 students. There were no significant differences in sAA between or within students completing the intervention and control conditions. sNGF was not subjected to analysis as most levels were undetectable. Significant differences in SVAS scores were found between the intervention and control condition, with large effect sizes. SVAS scores were lower following the intervention, regardless of condition order (intervention first, p = 0.0001, d = 1.87; intervention second, p = 0.0004, d = 1.63). No SVAS differences were found for the control condition. Based on these findings, campus events with visiting therapy dogs represent a costeffective, easily accessible activity to reduce perceived, but not physiological, stress for college students prior to final exams.Keywords: animal-assisted activities, exam stress, human-animal interaction, therapy dogs Offering students the opportunity to interact with friendly dogs during exam periods is gaining popularity at colleges and universities. Tufts University, Emory University Law School, Kent State University, Harvard Medical School, and Yale Law School are among those offering such opportunities (Turner 2012;Christensen 2013). While anecdotal accounts of the popularity and benefits of these dog visits are reported, no formal studies of efficacy have been published. Before advocating for dog visits to address exam-related stress in college students, we first need evidence that such activities are effective in reducing student stress.It is well known that exams are a major stressful experience for college students. Elevated exam stress has been associated with increased tension and depression (Gilbert et al. 1996), poorer academic performance (Ng, Koh and Chia 2003), and lower student expectations of their grades (Austin, Saklofske and Mastoras 2010). Exam stress has also been negatively associated with physiological indicators of stress and immune function. Preuß and colleagues (2010) used salivary cortisol to measure physiological stress responses in college students before and after taking written and oral exams. Cortisol concentrations were elevated before, but not after, written exams and were higher before and after oral exams. Based on their findings, the authors concluded that while written exams caused a mild anticipatory stress response, oral exams elicited a strong...

The Effect of Dog-Assisted Intervention on Student Well-Being, Mood, and Anxiety

“…These results are broadly consistent with previous studies that have reported improvements in anxiety, mood, well-being, and perceived stress in college students after a therapy dog intervention [6,17,18,20,21]. Indeed, across our three measures, interacting with the dog appeared to be essential to the positive pre–post shift experienced by the students, with the presence of the handler having either a neutral (well-being and anxiety), or even a detrimental (mood) effect on outcome measures.…”

The feasibility of brief dog-assisted therapy on university students stress levels: the PAwS study

“…This is in line with other studies (Barker et al, 2005; although Barker used a different biomarker (cortisol) so it is not certain that they are measuring the same thing. A more recent study did not find any change in biomarkers, although it did in perceived stress (Barker et al, 2016). This study used different measures (STAI and blood pressure instead of the perceived stress scale and cortisol), however, the student populations were similar, stressed students with more females participating.…”

“…A recent study did find that students who attended animal-assisted therapy for an eight week course reported less homesickness and increased satisfaction and the dogs created a relaxing, soothing environment, however no measure of stress was reported (Binfet & Passmore, 2016). A randomised control trial with students stressed by an examination period reported significant decreases in perceived stress after 15 min with a dog, although there were no changes in salivary cortisol levels (Barker et al, 2016). Similarly, studies have found university students report lower levels of anxiety and loneliness following engagement with a therapy dog, along with improvements in the perception and accessibility of counselling services (Daltry & Mehr, 2015;Stewart et al, 2014).…”

The Effect of an Animal-Assisted Intervention on Physiological Measures of Stress and Anxiety in Graduate Professional Physical Therapy Students

“…For example, Nepps et al [20] found a significant reduction in state anxiety as measured by the STAI in patients in a mental health inpatient unit following a one-hour group session with a therapy dog, and Hoffmann et al [48] found a significant reduction in state anxiety in patients hospitalized with major depression following a 30-minute intervention in the presence of a dog compared to a control group. A study by Barker et al [50] examining the effects of a therapy dog on college student stress prior to final exams found that perceived stress as measured on a stress visual analog scale was significantly reduced following the therapy dog intervention compared to the control condition.…”