Publications
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A DOGGONE WAY TO REDUCE STRESS: AN ANIMAL ASSISTED INTERVENTION WITH COLLEGE STUDENTS.
Faculty Author(s): HOUSE, LISA A. ; BACKELS, KELSEY
Student Author(s): NEAL, CHELSEA
Department: CDRE
Publication: College Student Journal
Year: 2018
Abstract: This article will describe an animal assisted intervention conducted by a University Counseling Center as an outreach program to reduce stress among college students. The study will evaluate students' perceived personal benefits from exposure to therapy dogs on campus. Specifically, we examined if our therapy dog outreach program resulted in decreased stress and homesickness and increased student awareness of counseling services on campus. In addition, student perceptions of Departmental faculty and staff, with whom they had an informal opportunity to interact with during the outreach program, were assessed. Student feedback demonstrated this outreach program to be highly successful in reducing stress and homesickness and increasing student awareness of mental health care on campus. These promising results highlight the potential positive health benefits of incorporating therapy dogs on college campuses.
Link: A DOGGONE WAY TO REDUCE STRESS: AN ANIMAL ASSISTED INTERVENTION WITH COLLEGE STUDENTS.