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Effect of Dog Presence on Stress Levels in Students under Psychological Strain: A Pilot Study

Author

Listed:
  • Kristýna Machová

    (Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Radka Procházková

    (Department of Statistics, Faculty of Economics and Management, Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Mariana Vadroňová

    (Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Michaela Součková

    (Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Eliška Prouzová

    (Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources Czech University of Life Sciences, 16500 Prague, Czech Republic)

Abstract

As university students face many stressful situations, especially during the examination period, this study focused on the use of animal-assisted activities (AAAs) with a dog as a means of relieving students’ stress before a final exam. The aim was to determine whether a 10-min interaction with a dog affected subjectively evaluated stress and mood, objective blood pressure, and heart rate. Ninety-three female students (mean age = 22.5 years; standard deviation = 3.8 years) were divided into three groups according to their preference. The first group underwent AAAs ( n = 26), the second group chose a relaxation technique ( n = 28), and the last one was a control group ( n = 39). Physiological values were measured using a pressure gauge and the subjective feelings of stress and mood were evaluated by the Likert scale 1–5. The AAA group showed significant improvement after 10 min of interaction in both mood and stress, with no change in heart rate and blood pressure. The remaining groups showed a significant decrease in blood pressure, but not in heart rate, with different evaluations of mood and stress. AAAs with a dog appear to be effective in improving students’ mood and stress without affecting their physiological parameters.

Suggested Citation

  • Kristýna Machová & Radka Procházková & Mariana Vadroňová & Michaela Součková & Eliška Prouzová, 2020. "Effect of Dog Presence on Stress Levels in Students under Psychological Strain: A Pilot Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-12, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:7:p:2286-:d:338307
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Victoria L. Brelsford & Kerstin Meints & Nancy R. Gee & Karen Pfeffer, 2017. "Animal-Assisted Interventions in the Classroom—A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-33, June.
    2. Dasha Grajfoner & Emma Harte & Lauren M. Potter & Nicola McGuigan, 2017. "The Effect of Dog-Assisted Intervention on Student Well-Being, Mood, and Anxiety," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-9, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Charlotte Parbery-Clark & Marvellas Lubamba & Louise Tanner & Elaine McColl, 2021. "Animal-Assisted Interventions for the Improvement of Mental Health Outcomes in Higher Education Students: A Systematic Review of Randomised Controlled Trials," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-43, October.

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